


Down In Africa

by h_lovely



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Lemon, Lime, M/M, Mild Language, Minor Animal Death/Violence, Minor Violence, Mystery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-04
Updated: 2015-09-03
Packaged: 2018-04-02 18:28:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 52,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4070128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/h_lovely/pseuds/h_lovely
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a fellow customs agent goes missing, Trowa is sent undercover to an animal reserve in Tanzania where he encounters something that might be more dangerous than that of deadly snakes, man-eating lions, and the devious poachers he's been sent there to investigate. The danger in question: his new roommate, Duo Maxwell. - 3x2 -</p><p> <br/><em>If he angled himself just right he was able to make out Duo's features reflected in the truck's dusty side-mirror distracting him every so often from his studies.</em></p><p>[hiatus]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Five O'Clock Touchdown

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Well, here it is- my latest plot bunny turned multi-chapter fic. Here's to those wanting a summertime AU read full of exotic lands, adventure, a mystery, and a maybe bit of smut. I will do my best in updating this story (already half-way written and fully planned) once a week throughout the coming summer months. Plot ideas inspired by a book of my childhood, 'Hardy Boys Casefiles #64.'
> 
> Some things to know before reading on: I do not claim to be an expert on Africa, the native animals, or the Ngorongoro Conservation Area/Crater, but I have done my research. Aspects of this story are admittedly fudged, like my take on the U.S. Customs & Border Protection (which I also claim little knowledge on) and the existence of Trowa's job title and description throughout. As well, to my knowledge, the 'Compound' mentioned does not exist and is a purely fictitious locale that I have constructed. So, at the rate of not digressing here, we'll all have to try not to get too bogged down in the details.
> 
> Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is a product of Sunrise & Bandai Entertainment, I do not claim ownership to these characters, only to my own words.

The woman sitting across from him was speaking, her voice serious, her demeanor stiff as usual, her glossed lips pursed as she eyed him after every few words searching for some kind of reaction. He gave none, and most likely wouldn't the entire briefing; he was not known to be easily read by anyone.

Trowa Barton was having a difficult time focussing on her words as the protocols for the U.S. Customs & Border Protection had been ingrained in his brain, tattooed there over the five years he'd served as an agent. He found himself releasing a sigh and rather wished that he had not been recently entrusted with the new title of Investigative Agent and longed- for a brief second- for a frontline, rookie job at an airport or border patrol. He realized that this was counterproductive thinking- he was almost overqualified for this new position, even so he had accepted the duties with as much pride as he could muster. At least undercover operations proved to be  _somewhat_  interesting.

And hell, he  _was_  good at it. His entire life he'd been able to integrate himself seamlessly wherever he went, going unnoticed by most in school, in his many foster homes, at university, and then finally with the CBP. But his skills within the agency were hard to overlook, he had an aptitude for test taking and rose within the ranks quite easily, even if that hadn't been his initial intention. But at least the investigatory field offered him the option of disappearing from most anyone's radar- at least for a little while as long as he kept up with his comm reports.

Commander Une was finishing a sentence that was so familiar to him he found it trickling straight in one ear and out the other. She paused, as she had done after every other natural stopping place, and she herself let out a sigh of exasperation.

"What do you know about animal smuggling, Barton?" the woman asked. Finally she was onto the root of his next mission, past the mandatory protocol and onto something he could actually start to sink his teeth into.

Trowa shrugged his broad shoulders, the stiff fabric of his dress shirt pulling against lean muscles. "There's an illegal market. Skins, ivory, anything of immense resale value."

Une looked at him and nodded, only able to make contact with one green eye as the other was hidden behind a shroud of golden bangs. "It's a multi-billion dollar market."

She turned in her swivel chair to tap against a flatscreen monitor behind her. After a moment of blackness came the previously recorded image of a large, gray beast crashing frantically through a tuft of grasses and deadened bushes. Its thick ivory tusks curved slightly upwards towards the elephant's panic filled eyes. Behind the animal came shouting and a language Trowa attempted to recognize, a group of men in khaki garb chasing after their prey, rifles in all of their gloved hands. Half a dozen shots later the chase was over, red blood spouting from the wounds that littered the animal's thick, leathery skin. The elephant fell to the ground and Trowa found himself looking away, but still not allowing any emotion to register on his features.

"You'll be traveling to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in the Arusha Region of Tanzania," Une went on to explain, trying her best to also ignore the way the video had produced a feeling of sickness in the air between the two. "There you'll be posing as a new hire for the Po Animal & Nature Compound. It's a wild-animal research facility and hospital run by renowned doctor, Sally Po. Animals from around the world are sent to her because many zoos and nature preserves just can't meet the level of care she can provide."

Trowa nodded along with the explanation, calculating the way Une had spoken of the doctor and filing away the thought that Po may have been a suspect for the CBP, but she was not near the top of the list. He'd been to Africa once before, but South Africa- a place much different than where he would soon find himself. He rolled his shoulders once and realized somewhat happily that he'd at least be able to retire the ill-fitting attire he was forced to wear to work while stationed in the states and not out on assignment.  _It's the little things,_  he had to continually remind himself.

"Where did you receive this footage?" Trowa waved a long length of fingers at the screen that had now gone black again.

He watched as Une's face hardened. "It was shot by one of our other agents only a few weeks ago near the Ngorongoro Crater, Zechs Merquise." Her frown deepened then. "It was received just before he- disappeared."

There it was, the real reason for his presence in Une's office, for the suddenness of the new assignment, for the long and overdrawn briefing. He'd heard of Merquise before, knew of him as a senior agent in the investigative sector, but had never been formally introduced. Trowa remembered an image of the man, cold blue eyes, straight silvery-blond hair that hung long down his stiff back. Merquise was attractive in a mature sort of way; if someone had asked him directly, he might have admitted to that.

"He's missing. Nothing else to go on?" Trowa wondered, absently staring at the table between them.

"Not much," Une responded quickly. "He was posing as a photojournalist, so heavily undercover that we did not want to go poking around and lose any of the ground he had gained us."

It was a very diplomatic way of looking at things. The man could be laying dead out in the middle of the Sahara but, for the sake of the mission, they were just going to send Trowa in to pick up where the other agent left off. If he ran across Merquise then all the better, but it was obviously not priority number one.

Trowa inclined his head, but did not respond because there was not much to actually be said. It made sense, as an agent he understood, and he figured if Merquise were alive somewhere then he'd already conceded to the fact that he was now on his own and that would be, as well, understood by him. There was this tiny, near imperceptible desire to find Merquise  _and_  wrap the investigation simply in order to throw it back in the agency's arrogant face.

"You'll need a few additional immunizations and medications," Une was explaining, having moved past briefing and onto the extra details of his assignment. "Once you arrive in Arusha you'll meet with Agent Kushrenada, he's who you'll be reporting to while in the NCA."

Trowa felt himself cringe inwardly. Just as he knew of Agent Merquise, Kushrenada was someone he'd heard stories of, but unlike Merquise, that information was not as praising. He didn't want to report to anyone aside from maybe Commander Une, normally he did his undercover ops on his own, cut off from the CBP save for a few intermittent reports over an encrypted server.

The distaste must have registered on his face, much to his discomfort, as Une gave him a soft, almost apologetic smile. Perhaps she thought she'd offended him- which might not have actually been far from the truth.

"You'll still be working primarily on your own. Kushrenada is stationed in Arusha- where he will stay," said Une. "The only other people you'll run into are Dr. Po, her staff, and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority- but the Rangers should be nothing more than a helpful wealth of knowledge about the area."

Trowa felt somewhat relieved by the news and responded with another nod of understanding. Une dismissed him then with a quick "good luck" and an order to report to the infirmary for his pre-assignment check-up and immunizations. In a few short hours he would be on a plane crossing the Atlantic, the solitude of travel affording him plenty of time to prepare himself for his newest persona and perhaps to brush up on his Swahili.

* * *

The Arusha Airport was small to say the least. A few runways, a short control tower, and a single terminal that was labeled 'Arusha Airport HTAR' atop its roof in yellow paint. The plane that Trowa had taken into the country had been small as well, only a handful of other passengers alongside him, though the trip hadn't been too harrowing; he'd been in a two-seater during a torrential rainstorm, so this had seemed like nothing more than a pleasant joy-ride.

Trowa slung a camel-colored duffel over his shoulder and exited the plane onto the tarmac and into Tanzania's sticky air, it was at least eighty-degrees with even higher humidity, the sun beating against his face, though the slight breeze he felt rush over his skin made it feel more tolerable than the stuffy cabin he'd just been occupying.

He'd packed only the essentials, clothing consisting of some t-shirts, work pants, and shorts he'd had from other missions set in even more sweltering locales. He was wearing a very innocuous outfit of olive and khaki, the only thing remotely standing out were his worn, orange trainers; he'd brought boots with him as well, but the trip in hadn't called for that level of attire.

His cover was as a recent university grad who'd studied biology- it hadn't been much of a lie either, he had the degree to prove it. How he'd ended up at the CBP he still wasn't quite sure, but it paid good money and the benefits were apparently great though he didn't really pay much attention. But in the end such a degree had afforded him some prime undercover assignments, so he really couldn't complain.

Trowa had been told that Kushrenada would meet him in the terminal and then from there he would be picked up by someone from the Compound and that would be when his mission truly began.

He made his way inside, the heat lessening only slightly in the shade that the building provided; there was no central air unit, only a few swamp coolers placed strategically around the room that was littered with fifty-or-so mismatched plastic chairs for passengers to occupy while waiting to board their flights. There were several decrepit looking television monitors set up near each gate's exit door that were set on news channels- some in English while others were in the country's other native language of Swahili.

Trowa glanced around trying his best to blend in with the rest of the departing passengers, though most were of African descent, so that was harder than it seemed. There were a few tourists milling around though and he committed to the idea that he fit into that category, as being an 'undercover customs agent' in an unfamiliar country probably wouldn't go over too well.

He had nothing to declare and then got his forged passport stamped. It took only a moment before he saw the man he was supposed to be making contact with.

Kushrenada was tall, and that was saying something considering Trowa's own 6'3" height, he wore nondescript clothing as well, but had distinctive, forked eyebrows resting heavily above thoughtful eyes as he caught Trowa's vision from across the waiting area.

Trowa swallowed and walked towards the man, his steps slow and casual. They greeted each other with a nod and then Kushrenada's lips pulled back into a smile. "They said it would rain tomorrow."

"You can't trust the weatherman, not in the summer," Trowa muttered back. He despised these useless countersigns that the CBP made their agents use.

Kushrenada's smile grew slicker. "It's good it will be autumn soon, then, eh Barton?"

Trowa growled at that, annoyed that the man had blatantly used his real last name instead of the code-name Une had assigned him; agents were all allowed to keep their first names, but last names were frequently adjusted depending on assignment. According to Une, Kushrenada wasn't technically on an undercover op, but it gave the man no right to out him to any listening ears so blatantly. He knew the older man was testing him, or perhaps just messing with him, but it still made his fingers clench into fists at his sides.

"I'm sorry,  _Bloom_ ," Kushrenada amended, his eyes twinkling with a harmless amusement that Trowa could not comprehend.

Already having had enough of this man, Trowa shook his head. "Alright, just get on with it. I'm supposed to be picked up here soon for the Compound."

"Eager, are we?" Kushrenada countered, but then seemed to sober at the glare that Trowa shot straight through him. "Fine then. I've just got some intel- you'll be spending much of your time with Po, she runs the Compound as I'm sure you've been informed."

"Anything I need to know?" Trowa grunted.

The other man shrugged, leaning back against the wall. "Dr. Sally Po, born in Tanzania, her father was Chinese, her mother Australian. They were wildlife enthusiasts- I suppose that's where she got it. Studied in America, Europe, some Asian countries, all the places to garner contacts for animal smuggling."

Trowa's brows furrowed as he remembered how highly Une had spoken of the woman compared to the accusations Kushrenada was now making. "If saving animals is her career I can't imagine she'd have much of a substantial motive."

Kushrenada let out a bark of a laugh. "Money, kid, that's all the motive anyone needs. At least that's what Merquise and I had come up with so far."

Trowa flinched at being labeled a 'kid' by the man he was slowly becoming disgusted with. He was twenty-six years old, held a degree from a prominent university and a high-ranking position within the CBP; he was hardly a damn  _kid_.

He tried to shake off the feeling of repulsion and change the subject back towards the intel he might actually need to do his job convincingly. "Does Dr. Po run the facility on her own?"

Kushrenada shook his head. "She's got a lot of help actually, mostly students like you're going to be, or else just hired hands. She's got a right-hand man though, Chang I think is his name."

Trowa logged that identity away for later use, he'd be meeting all of these people soon enough and if he had some sort of a leg up then he'd be able to slip in easily and get to work on the true assignment at hand.

He was going to continue on with another inquiry, but then Kushrenada was lowering his chin and waving a hand towards the glass doors on the other side from them where there was a small carport. Trowa turned slightly to see that an old truck had just pulled up, the words 'Po Animal & Nature Compound' stenciled on the side, though most of it was covered in mud and dirt.

"Just remember your reports, kid," Kushrenada muttered in his ear before disappearing out of a back emergency exit door leaving Trowa to officially begin his assignment.

Trowa stood for another minute simply watching the truck from his slightly obscured position. The passenger door opened and down hopped a man that wasn't any older than himself, but couldn't have been more opposite in appearance. He wore a pair of ragged, charcoal cargo shorts, dusty black combat boots, and a khaki linen shirt left open over a white tank-top that had seen better days. The clothing fit his lean frame and managed to show just a hint of tanned pectoral muscles and black ink on his skin. His chestnut hair was long, longer than even that of Merquise's, and tied back into a braid that swayed behind him as he walked with a sort of confident swagger that Trowa had never seen before. There was a damp looking red kerchief folded and tied around his neck and he wore a pair of amber aviators that, when removed as he entered into the terminal, revealed a pair of inquisitive indigo eyes.

Trowa nearly forgot where he was, what he was doing, what the parameters of his mission were until the other man walking towards him with a large grin spoke. "Hey, you Trowa Bloom?"

Trowa blinked, annoyed at himself for becoming so oddly disoriented. He nodded his head a few times and readjusted the duffle on his shoulder. He watched the other man's lips morph into something more like a smirk.

"Name's Duo Maxwell- I work at the Compound with Dr. Po. It's nice to meet ya." The man thrust out a hand and Trowa took it, held firmly to the rough palm for a brief second, and then released suddenly unsure of why Duo was still smirking at him.

Trowa swallowed and then his eyes drifted to the carport. "Dr. Po?" he wondered, tilting his head towards the blonde woman currently sitting behind the wheel of the still running pick-up truck.

Duo, his stare finally leaving Trowa's face to see where he was gesturing, nodded and gave him a wave. "Yeah, that's the doc. C'mon- the sooner we get back the sooner we can eat."

Trowa had barely noticed that the sun had begun its descent, sliding below the horizon. He followed the man out towards the truck, having to fight back the urge to reach out and grab the infuriating braid that swung in front of him like a pendulum. He could never understand why anyone would want hair that long, especially someone who spent their livelihood in a climate such as Africa's.

Duo turned to him as they walked through the glass doors and back into the muggy air. "Normally you wouldn't get Sally as part of your welcoming committee, but we had to pick up some supplies from Arusha, so you lucked out man."

He stood back as Duo grabbed at his only piece of luggage, not bothering to ask, and then placed it in the truck's bed along with a few crates and canvas bags of what Trowa assumed were the supplies just mentioned.

Duo wrenched open the passenger door and then turned to Trowa with an appraising look. "Here," he hooked his thumb towards the open door. "You take shot-gun. You're legs are way too long to be comfortable in the back."

Trowa wondered vaguely why this new acquaintance would even consider his comfort as they had literally just met, but upon observing the genuine smile and realizing that they were about six inches different in height, Trowa silently agreed and hauled himself into the passenger side, while Duo scrambled through the smaller door to the backseat of the cab.

The woman sitting in the driver's seat was skimming over a stack of papers in her hands and then- only after she was finished reading- did she turn to Trowa. She was younger than he'd assumed she would be, her face tanned from spending days in the sun, her honey-blonde hair pulled into a side-braid that matched Duo's own, except in length. She smiled at him warmly and he could see a sincerity in her almond shaped gray-blue eyes.

"I'm Dr. Po, but everyone around the Compound just calls me Sally." She then thrust the stack of papers and articles she'd been looking over into his hands- no friendly handshake like he'd received from Duo, which he decided that he was okay with.

Sally put the truck in drive. "We've got a two hour drive back home- a rough one- that explains some of what we do at the Compound. Familiarize yourself with it as I plan on putting you straight to work tomorrow morning."

The words had come out like an order, but the grin had never left her face. Trowa nodded and he heard a chuckle filter up from behind him. Duo leaned his head forward and rested his forearms against the shoulders of the seats in front of him as the truck pulled away- quicker than Trowa had been expecting.

"You don't talk much do ya? You ever say more than two words, Tro?"

Duo laughed and Trowa found himself hastening to remember the last time anyone had ever  _not_  used his full name before. He felt as though, given his character, he should be annoyed by it, but for some reason he didn't mind.

He turned then to face Duo straight on. "Yes. Often. But probably not as much as you."

The blush that flamed the other man's cheeks made Trowa realize the humor in what he had actually just said out loud. Well this was a first, Trowa Barton: the comedian.

Beside him Sally had fallen into a bout of laughter herself. She turned her eyes from the road for a second to meet his own, still serious, gaze. "I think you're going to fit in with us just fine, Trowa."

For the duration of the trip Trowa found himself engrossed in the research and articles that Sally had previously granted him with, his background in biology already coming in handy when reading some of the zoological journals. Duo Maxwell didn't say another word, probably just tired from the day's excursion, but still Trowa wondered at the silence.

If he angled himself just right he was able to make out Duo's features reflected in the truck's dusty side-mirror distracting him every so often from his studies.


	2. B. arietans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Duo gestured to the coiled and brown spotted creature inside. "Bitis arietans," he stated in a mock british accent. "Or more commonly known as-"_
> 
> _"A puff adder," Trowa finished for him._

The night had been filled with dreams that Trowa hadn't experienced since preadolescence. Long hair loose and flowing, silken to the touch, rough lips against his own, callused hands against his muscular frame...

He'd not gotten much sleep at all and he chastised his mind heavily for keeping him up. At this point he needed as much rest as possible in order to proceed with the investigatory portion of his assignment. He needed to be sharp, with his wits about him at all times, not daydreaming of hips grinding against his own.

Trowa's palms dug into his closed eyes, eventually creating a dizzying pattern of colors that somewhat resembled the immense star patterns that had begun to reveal themselves in the clear, night sky as he'd arrived at the Compound. His watch told him that it was not time to get up, but he knew that attempting to fall back into slumber would only result in more of the infuriating dreams invading his subconscious.

He sat up in his bunk and stared upward at the metal bars supporting the bed atop his own. It had just been coincidence, pure convenience, that he'd been placed in these quarters as Duo Maxwell's new bunkmate. The previous one had gone off to work in the peace-corps or something, Trowa couldn't really remember as he had only been half listening at the time.

It had soon dawned on him that his little quip in the truck about the rate at which Duo spoke was more than truthful of the man. Even if he'd wanted to speak, it would have been hard to get a word in edgewise with his new roommate.

He sighed and decided to get up in hopes of a shower to clear his head. He moved quietly, stretching upwards, only to find that Duo wasn't curled up in his bunk where Trowa had last seen him the night before.

Trowa checked his watch again, the sun would just be rising now. He thought it interesting that the man he'd pegged as rebellious, and potentially having a penchant for sleeping-in, would be up before the crack of dawn, before he'd even told Trowa things got started around the Compound as he'd rattled off the day's usual schedule of chores and events before they'd both drifted off.

Realizing that it was really none of his concern, Trowa grabbed one of the towels bestowed upon him and a fresh change of clothing and headed towards the dormitory showers. Each room was a double with a bunk-bed, a small closet, chest of drawers, and a sink, but the rest of the facilities were down the hall- 'community style' as Duo had put it.

He found himself alone in the showers and he was glad of that even though he'd never been known to embarrass or startle easily. He'd always been sure of himself, confident, and no one would ever change that.

The solitude afforded him time to think as the cool water ran over his skin, ridding himself of the previous day's travel and his erogenous thoughts from the night before. He had to focus on the mission, he had to find Merquise- or rather 'Milliardo Peacecraft,' the man's undercover identity- as he'd decided personally that that was the most efficient way of, then in turn, investigating and learning more in regards to the animal smuggling operation. There had to be a connection, he was all too sure of that.

When he'd finished his shower and dressed and readied himself for the day, donning a shirt and a pair of thick khaki pants to tuck into his boots, Trowa checked his watch; it was just going on 6:30 am.

Since his bunkmate was gone, the man that had been entrusted to 'look after him' and 'show him the ropes,' Trowa decided that he could give himself a brief tour of the grounds that Duo had promised him the night before.

When they'd pulled into the Compound the day before Trowa had not been able to make out much as the sun had disappeared by the time they'd made it to the Ngorongoro Crater. Now, as the pink lights of day were slowly creeping across the vast African landscape he could see nearly the entire expanse of his new home.

He'd read in the articles that Sally Po had provided him with about the NCA's 8,000 plus square kilometer expanse, but being immersed in the landscape now was nothing short of unreal. In the distance all around him were rifts of small mountains that made up the crater's edge, the land covered in gold and green intertwined with the occasional tree or thicket of brush. He'd learned that Masai villages were close, but he could not seek them out with the naked eye, and that the area's main purpose, like that of the Compound, was to create a harmonious existence between wildlife and people- something he found to be a sadly rare ideal these days.

Beneath his feet the grass was yellow and dry, dirt kicking up with every footstep. Fifty yards from the dormitories Trowa could see the outline of a large two-story house that reminded him of an old plantation with its grecian white columns and wrap-around porch. Just behind the structure he could see an immense aviary built of metal and wire that harbored at least two-dozen colorful birds of all different species. He could hear them already chirping and cackling and begging for their breakfast as the sun rose higher. There were several buildings scattered about, one being the mess-hall that he'd eaten dinner in last night, the others what he could assume were used as storage or medical facilities.

His eyes were just discovering the outlying buildings that harbored tall chain-link fences with corrugated metal roofs when the trumpeting sound of an elephant caused his frame to whip around towards the area which the loud noise had emanated from.

Curiosity peaking, Trowa found his feet taking him around the back of the dormitory building to spy a large high-fenced area twenty-yards off. Inside the pen was one lone elephant, not as big as some he'd seen before at zoos, on television, or even in the video that Une had shown him, but still larger than any animal he'd come into any close contact with before.

He walked slowly towards the beast, his eyes so fixated on the way the sun was creating orange and shadowed stripes across her majestic frame, that he didn't at first notice the man handing her what appeared to be half of a watermelon through an open panel in the fence.

Duo stood with hands on his hips watching the great beast enjoy her early morning snack. He had that wide smile across his face- the one he'd greeted Trowa with- and his eyes shown as the sun rose higher with each passing minute.

Trowa stopped up short a few feet from the animal and her companion. He wasn't sure if he should say anything and did not want to ruin the moment he had so accidentally come across. If that were him, he would have probably been looking for privacy after having woken up so early to come and visit such a friend- but of course Duo was not him, not anywhere close, that much had been made abundantly clear so far.

After another hesitant moment Duo turned and noticed him, his smile only faltering for a second as he waved a hand towards Trowa. "Hey man, come on over and meet Raza."

It took Trowa a moment before his muscles would listen to his brain's commands, then he was walking forward, his eyes once again transfixed on the animal looming above him. Her eyes sparkled as much as Duo's as he approached, her mouth hanging open for a brief moment to reveal a pink tongue and then her head was waggling from side to side, her large ears flapping wildly; it looked like she was laughing at him.

"I think she likes you," Duo chuckled from his position next to him.

Trowa watched as her trunk swayed from left to right and it reminded him of the way he'd watched Duo's braid the day before. He looked into her eyes as they blinked a few times at him. The elephant was tall, but not as tall as he'd originally thought from afar, the top of her head only reaching just past his own.

"She's small," Trowa stated.

Duo beamed up at Raza. "She's three years old- just a baby."

His voice hitched at the word 'baby' and Trowa couldn't help but find it odd, if not slightly endearing, considering how different the braided man seemed to act around the animal.

Duo then looked to his wrist as if an imaginary watch had appeared there. "You're up early."

Trowa gave him a pointed look, wanting to voice the same observation in return, but instead brushing it off with a shake of his head. "Couldn't sleep anymore."

Duo acknowledged that with a nod, his vision flicking towards the horizon where the warm sun was now nearly hovering in full above the far away lands. "Me either- sometimes I like to catch the sunrise. It's pretty fantastic here."

Trowa decided he couldn't argue with that as the sound of Raza's trumpeting filled the air. She was trying to redirect their attention back to her, almost offended that they'd rather look at anything else.

Chuckling, Duo picked up a quarter piece of a melon with a yellow-hued rind and tossed it at Trowa who caught it with quick hands. "She'll like you even more once you feed her."

Trowa had never fed such an animal before in his life, in fact the only animals he'd ever fed were the cats one of his foster families had owned when he was a teenager. His university courses had taught him a lot, but that was all book-smarts. He'd not taken the field course for 'Three-Year Old African Elephant Care.'

There was a hand on his shoulder then as he was hesitating. Duo leaned towards him. "Go on, I'm the only one around here that'll bite."

It had been said in such a playful, lighthearted manner that at first Trowa didn't notice the undertone until he caught those indigo eyes staring at him with something unreadable hiding within their depths.

He swallowed and shook the thought away as he took the necessary steps forward to meet Raza's anticipatory gaze. Trowa held out the fruit and she opened her mouth, pulling her trunk back obediently, waiting for her prize. He tossed the piece forward gently and she caught it, expertly swallowing and immediately ready for another.

Trowa felt the smile forming on his lips and then Duo's hand was clapping him on the shoulder again. "Damn, you're a natural, Tro."

Raza let out another noise that sounded like a pulsating trumpet. Trowa couldn't help but emulate Duo's own chuckling as the elephant seemed to beg them for more treats.

Duo reached out a palm and patted the side of her face. "That's all I got for you today. Sally'd kill me if she knew I was sneaking you any extra."

Trowa nearly didn't catch the wink the other man sent his way as he was too enthralled by the gentle and quite humorous beast before him. Duo's voice lowered as if they truly were conspiring. "Our little secret, eh?"

But before Trowa could respond Duo was already onto his next thought. He was gesturing around them with wide arms, bare to reveal some black birds spiraling up his right bicep towards his collar bone as his only clothing were some camo shorts and the tank he'd fallen asleep in. "I guess I owe you a tour or something."

Trowa just shrugged his shoulders as he'd already managed to figure out the Compound's general layout on his own, but a closer look around certainly wouldn't hurt. Duo took the lead, ignoring the lack of words that had been shared between them, not bothering to make the same mistake he'd made by commenting on it the day before.

The two made their way back around the dorms and onto a crude dirt pathway that led towards some of the buildings Trowa had been taking in earlier. As they neared he could see the vast array of animals that the Compound harbored. Cages and pens of all sizes sheltering lions, gazelles, monkeys, boars, and even a zebra with its leg wrapped in sterile medical bandages.

Duo then showed him a litter of tiny, pouncing cheetah cubs. There were four of them and they were pawing and climbing over one another, their tiny voices mewling as they vied for the men's attention.

"Their mom was killed by poachers," Duo explained sadly as he knelt down in front of the small kittens. "If we hadn't found them they would have either been scavenged by something bigger or starved to death."

At the word 'poachers' Trowa's mind jumped back into the mode of agent. During his interaction with Raza he'd nearly forgotten the real reason he was here in Africa. He wondered vaguely if he'd ever get the time to truly start investigating, but then conceded to the fact that he had to establish trust and integrate himself seamlessly into his new surroundings before he could viably do much snooping around.

He watched as Duo fearlessly poked his fingers through the fencing to allow a couple of the cubs to rub against him, their mouths clearly searching for breakfast as they tested the tips of his fingers out with a few cautious nips. Duo just laughed and swiped at one their heads before pulling himself back up into a standing position.

"It's about feeding time," he explained. "Let's head to the lab and see if we can catch Sally before her rounds and see what she's cooked up for you today."

Duo made the woman sound like a mad scientist and the image made Trowa smirk inwardly. He followed him across the grounds back towards the plantation style house and then past it towards the largest building on its east side. It was a laboratory with an animal hospital attached to it where Duo introduced Trowa to some of the techs that were getting ready and setting up for the day.

They stopped briefly by a large, glass tank situated against the wall of the main laboratory. Duo gestured to the coiled and brown spotted creature inside. "Bitis arietans," he stated in a mock british accent. "Or more commonly known as-"

"A puff adder," Trowa finished for him, his eyes watching as the thick snake's eyes seemed to open a fraction of a centimeter to view whoever it was that was speaking about him.

"You know about snakes?" Duo wondered, clearly intrigued by the new information.

Trowa waved his hand in the air as if to dismiss the idea that he might be some kind of expert- which he admittedly was not. "I've taken a couple of zoology courses."

Duo gave him an appreciative look. "Then I guess I don't have to tell you how lethal these guys are." He hooked a thumb over his shoulder towards the cage.

Nodding, Trowa decided this was as good an opening as ever- he had to start somewhere after all. "But I am interested in learning more about all the animals here. In fact, I just saw some great animal photography from the Ngorongoro Crater by a man named Milliardo Peacecraft. Do you know if he's still doing work around here?"

It was casual, a drop of a name, a search for some kind of reaction. Duo gave none. His face was blank when he next spoke. "I've heard of him. He visited here a while ago- but only for a couple of days."

Trowa frowned, trying hard to hide his dissatisfaction for that answer. "Do you know where he went after his visit?"

The braided man's shoulders lifted up and down heavily. "How should I know?"

With the desire to press for more information Trowa had involuntarily taken a step forward, but then the sound of footsteps behind him and a cheerful greeting averted both men's attention to Sally Po, clipboard in hand, tasks for the day already rattling out of her mouth. His curiosity would unfortunately have to wait.

* * *

Trowa's first day at the Compound had been filled with more hard-labor than he'd been anticipating. It wasn't that the man was in bad shape, in fact he was in the best shape of his life, eating healthy, visiting the gym regularly back home, but this workout had been a new sort of experience.

He'd shadowed Duo most of the day at Sally's request, realizing that the man really was going to be tagged 'responsible' for him as they seemed to 'mesh well together.' They were roughly the same age and being roommates certainly helped he supposed and for some reason Sally seemed determined to allow Trowa the great company that Duo Maxwell apparently provided.

They'd not had much time to talk- which was fine with Trowa- as their day had been filled to the brim with work and activity, but even as they trudged through cages, shoveled, cleaned, and hosed all throughout the morning Duo had managed to crack quite a few jokes and slip in some insider knowledge about the Compound and its staff.

It had taken Trowa a few hours to adjust to the new climate, the new physical demands, and the general air of the place, so by the time they'd eaten lunch and rested up for the afternoon he felt rather like he'd been there for weeks instead of less than twenty-four hours.

He'd tried not to worry his mind about the investigation as he learned the ropes of the place, but every once in a while Trowa would notice something or meet a new face and he would log the information in the back of his mind for later use. When Duo had introduced him to Sally Po's 'right-hand man' he'd even been fairly tempted to begin questioning the man on Merquise just as he'd done earlier in the lab, but at his better judgement he decided to hold back for now.

Duo had applied that sloppy smile to his grimy features and gestured between the short, broad-shoulderd man and Trowa with a wild hand. The other man had acknowledged their presence, but his exterior appeared to be even more unreadable than that of Trowa's own.

"Chang Wufei," Duo had said. "Meet Trowa Bloom, my new bunkmate. Just flew in from the States last night."

Trowa had assumed that the man- Wufei- had already known about his arrival at the Compound considering his position there, but he'd nodded in greeting and received much the same in return and, though Duo would have probably preferred to chat more, that had been pretty much the extent of it.

"Glad to have you with us," Wufei had said, the words sounding stiff and practiced as if that was what he said to everyone. Trowa didn't mind though as he understood the efficiency behind it and decided rather quickly that he liked the man.

The night came swiftly then as Trowa had helped Duo in preparing a mixture of fruits and seeds to take to the aviary before they found themselves in the mess hall for a hearty meal of stew over rice,  _Ndizi Nyama_ , and according to Duo 'the best meal this side of Arusha.'

Soon they were hitting the showers, the warm water soothing Trowa's tired muscles, and then shuffling back to their room, bodies pulled towards their respective beds like magnets. Trowa understood now why Duo had appeared so exhausted the day before; working at the Compound certainly would prove to be a stamina-inducing experience.

"Good work today," Duo mumbled from above as they both lay in their beds in the darkness. His voice was muffled by his pillow and whatever else he said had gotten lost on its way to Trowa's ears. But only seconds later came the grumbling sound of soft snoring.

Trowa laid in bed then, allowing his muscles to relax and his eyes to close. He was determined not to let in any of the dreams that had kept him awake the night before; he'd put all that past him now with a day full of manual labor and animal care.

He listened to the other man's breathing and felt himself drift off, but for how long he couldn't be sure as a sensation near his feet seemed to startle him back awake. It was the feeling of something being dragged across his body, climbing slowly upwards. Weighty, rope-like; Duo's braid? No, it was too rough to be that.

As his eyes adjusted to the murky lighting Trowa found himself holding in a breath when the sheet across his body began to flutter with movement. It took only seconds for the head of a snake to appear as it slithered and writhed across his chest towards his features now set in stone.

Trowa's eyes were wide, but he commanded his entire body to stay still beneath the reptile. Through the small window on the wall next to his head came a sliver of light from an exterior lamp. He could just make out the snake's appearance through the dim shadows. It was the puff adder.


	3. Leopard Spotting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Before them lay a mosaic of lush green grass spotted with dirt and patches of gold that stretched on for miles. Beyond that Trowa could see the immense rims of the Ngorongoro Crater creeping up through the low clouds swimming across the warm, blue sky. Across the vast plains there were herds of antelope and zebras grazing, their hooves kicking up dust, but otherwise creating a calm and peaceful scene ahead of them._

Trowa was sure he'd never been so still in his life. It felt as though he had a gun cocked against the side of his head and with one wrong move he'd be blown away. But in this situation, one wrong move, and he'd get a dose of venom to be followed by shock, necrosis, hemorrhaging, and without proper treatment-  _death_.

He watched the snake as its scales seemed to flex and convulse with every movement. Black eyes pierced up at him as the animal crept closer, its tongue flicking out between two sharp fangs every few seconds, as if tasting the air.

The snake writhed forward, only a few inches from Trowa's chin now, but the sound of springs squeaking from the mattress above made both bodies tense for a brief second. He would have called out to Duo, but Trowa knew it was too much of a risk- a hazardous risk to his wellbeing.

After a few more seconds the snake's head bobbed up, rising until it was at eye-level. Trowa could feel his lungs burning with the need for release, but he didn't dare move. This was certainly not something he had ever encountered on any of his other assignments before- this was not something he'd ever been trained to handle.

There was another sound from above as Duo shifted in his sleep and the snake stiffened. Trowa kept his vision glued to the space just behind the creature's beady eyes. In a rush of adrenaline Trowa lashed out to grab the back of the snake's head, the air from his lungs flooding out in the form of a loud yell.

Duo was instantly awake, limbs flailing down off of his bunk as mumbled words of confusion left his mouth and his eyes peeled open to see Trowa holding the puff adder that he'd hoped was used to human contact.

Duo let out a shout of his own, his eyes widening at the sight, but before he could say anything more Trowa was growling, "Get something to put it in."

Quick on his feet, Duo lunged towards the closet to pull what looked like a large utility bucket from within its shallow depths. Whipping his hand away, Trowa dropped the snake into its temporary cage and Duo covered it quickly with a towel he'd retrieved from the floor.

They were silent for a moment, both staring with crazed eyes down at the snake neither could actually see anymore. Trowa could feel the muscles in his arms shaking and he clenched his fists in order to fight off the sensation. His skin was damp and some of his bangs clung to his forehead, but he didn't bother to brush them away.

"Shit." Duo's voice was no more than a breath. Trowa agreed with the sentiment, but still said nothing.

Duo turned to appraise Trowa's stiff body, his eyes lingering just a bit too long over his bare chest. "Did he-"

"No." Trowa shook his head, understanding that the man had meant to ask if the snake had managed a bite. He supposed he was lucky.

The sound of air blowing out of Duo's mouth pulled Trowa's gaze to his slightly parted lips. The braided man's eyes narrowed. "How the hell- I've never seen that snake anywhere other than the lab. How'd it get in here?"

It was a rhetorical question, that much was clear, but Trowa's mind was already on overdrive trying to find the answer. His eyes scoured the room as Duo went to turn on the overhead light. He bent to kneel down in order to search beneath their bunks.

"There," Trowa said softly, pointing towards a rectangular hole cut into the wall covered in wire meshing. "An air vent?"

Duo matched his position and studied the small cut-out. His voice grew deep and cold. "That's new."

Trowa knew it could not be a coincidence, his gut was telling him that something was not right, that perhaps his cover had already been blown- but he couldn't start jumping to conclusions. He stood then and brushed at an imaginary feeling on his forearms. "Maybe we can ask someone about it in the morning."

Duo gestured towards the bucket. "We've gotta take him back to the lab."

Trowa nodded and grabbed at the t-shirt he had previously discarded at the foot of his bed. Once both men had donned tennis shoes and grabbed a couple of flashlights from the chest of drawers they set out to carefully escort their unwelcome guest back to his home.

Duo was carrying a set of keys and he jingled as they made their way from the dormitories towards the lab and clinic, carefully carrying the animal between them by the bucket's metallic handle. The beams of their lanterns played across the grass that crunched beneath their feet, the light bumping and vibrating with every step.

Once they'd made it to their destination, Duo had unlocked the door and they'd slipped in unnoticed, almost as if they were running a reconnoissance mission in an unauthorized portion of the facility. The secrecy reminded Trowa once again of the true root behind his stay here in Tanzania.

Duo secured the puff adder while Trowa provided him with ample lighting as the other man seemed to be a bit more experienced with the wild reptile.

"There ya go, buddy," Duo murmured as he replaced the tank's grated top, fastening the bolts in securely.

He turned to Trowa and his genial voice was quickly replaced with one of sobriety. "No snake can get out of that tank on its own. This guy definitely had help," he whispered harshly.

As they made their way back to the dormitories Trowa could tell just how tense his bunkmate was. His gate was quick and his back seemed stiff; he was obviously just as angry and confused as Trowa was in regards to the whole incident.

In Trowa's mind he was already forming a checklist of the possible people with access to the lab and the puff adder's cage. Unfortunately Duo needed to be added to the list- although it was probably just a formality- but seeing as how he carried a large ring with many keys to many different locations around the Compound Trowa couldn't reasonably discount him. The idea that perhaps nearly the entire staff carried such key rings had entered the back of Trowa's thoughts, but he decided not to dwell on the possibility until he knew for sure.

When they finally made it back to the dorms Trowa turned to Duo with a fabricated look of anxiety. "You go ahead- I'm going to take a minute."

Duo fixed him with a suspicious look for only a slight second before grinning and nodding like he sympathized with his roommate. "Sure- fresh air always helps."

The instant Duo had disappeared back inside Trowa converted into agent mode. His steps were light against the ground as to not alert any of the other still sleeping residents. By the time he'd made it around the side to the window that looked into his and Duo's shared room he'd pulled the flashlight's beam behind the fabric of his t-shirt as to dilute the brightness of the light.

Trowa was just crouching down to inspect the 'air vent' he'd discovered earlier when a voice from behind nearly caused him to jump.

"You know, if you wanted to investigate you should have just said so."

He turned to be met with those sharp indigo eyes cutting through the darkness, staring at him with a nearly chastising look. Duo was smirking down at him and the way he said the word 'investigate' made Trowa think for a heartbeat that the man knew of his true identity.

But then Duo was kneeling down next to him in the grass, staring at the rectangular hole in the wall of the dorm. "Look, I could have just as easily been the victim in there earlier. I want to figure out what the hell went down just as much as you probably do, Tro."

Trowa managed to let out the breath he had involuntarily been holding without revealing just how tense he'd gotten. Duo leaned in closer to gaze at the air vent; their faces were mere inches from one another and Trowa could just make out the faintest scent of some sort of tropical shampoo. Then Duo's hand was on his own, grabbing at the flashlight he still held under his shirt, and forcing his wrist to turn and the light to shine better against the side of the building.

"Look," Duo said, interrupting the dangerous thoughts that were about to overtake Trowa's mind. "There's spots for six screws here, but three are missing."

At his own volition Trowa began to flick the light down the wall and towards the ground. His fingers reached out towards something metallic hidden in the grass.

"Someone was in too much of a hurry to put the rest back in," he speculated, picking up the missing screws in his palm to show Duo.

Having nearly forgotten their proximity, both men stared heavily at the air vent, a clear frustration between them growing with every second. Duo sat back on his haunches and waved a hand towards the wall. "I'm afraid to say that those screws and our little visitor tonight can't just be a coincidence."

It most certainly could not be, but Trowa was hesitant to agree so readily. After all, he was still supposed to be just some student from the U.S., not an undercover customs agent investigating a potential animal smuggling ring with a little missing persons case on the side. He stared at Duo trying to read the man that had suddenly gone quiet and distant, perhaps wrapped in his own thoughts just as Trowa now was.

After what felt like many long minutes had passed Duo finally shrugged and stood. "Like you said- we can talk to someone in the morning. Right now it ain't gonna do us any good to dwell on it and we'll need our sleep for whatever jobs Sally wants us for tomorrow."

With that he turned on his heel, Trowa following close behind still clutching at the discarded screws. And though he agreed with Duo, sleep being a precious resource he could not squander on this assignment, he began to fear that after this recent experience his over-active mind would not be kind to him the rest of the night.

* * *

Sunrise came earlier than Trowa would have liked. He'd spent the night tossing and turning and by the sounds emitted from above him, Duo hadn't had the best sleep either.

By the time both men had dressed and made it outside the sky was fading from a glowing yellow to an intense blue, promising a long day of sunshine and heat. Trowa sat in the mess hall across from Duo and watched as the man meticulously peeled back the shell of a hard-boiled egg piece by piece. Neither had spoken about the incident that had taken place the night before.

Trowa took a sip of chai from a chipped coffee mug, staring at the braided man over the rim with inquisitive eyes. The puff adder incident had seemed to ruffle Duo's feathers more than he thought it would- though of course he still didn't know the man in his entirety. Maybe it was true that he felt just as vulnerable, but he slept on the top bunk; that would have been almost impossible for the snake to reach it seemed. Still, he seemed quite shaken by the idea that Trowa might possibly have been bitten- there was something more to his behavior than he was letting on.

A few more silent minutes passed away and then a body was sitting down heavily on the bench next to Trowa. He turned to be met with the congenial smile of Sally Po, a steaming cup of tea in her hand.

"I've got a special assignment for you today, Duo," she said, her voice finally catching the other man's attention enough for him to look up from his nearly demolished egg.

"Oh?" It only took a few seconds of realization for his curiosity to peak. He grinned towards the doctor. "What's that?"

Sally leaned forward, an air of excitement radiating off of her. "Just got word that several elephant herds are on the move to new watering holes and the Rangers said they spotted two lion prides near the Tonga village. That means plenty of scouting to be done."

Trowa vaguely understood the need for the doctor's electric smile, but wasn't exactly sure what any of this had to do with Duo- or him either. But then Sally was turning her vision, flicking it between the two men for a few seconds, and then pinning back on Duo.

"We'll be introducing Raza back into the herd in a couple days time," she explained, trying obviously to reign herself in.

Duo let out an appreciative whoop from the back of his throat, his lips pulling wider. "Hey, that's great, Sally!"

Trowa gave a nod towards her and pictured the swaying elephant in his mind. Sally placed her palms on the tabletop then. "And I want the two of you to go out with Wufei today and spot leopards."

Trowa watched for Duo's reaction to that and when the man's smile didn't fade, Trowa let one creep onto his own features as well. Then Sally was looking at her watch and suddenly seemed flustered; she hadn't even waited for a reply, just said a quick 'have fun' and was gone from their table.

Trowa had wanted to bring up the puff adder, the tampering of the apparently 'new' dormitory air vent, but the woman was just such a whirlwind that he wasn't sure he'd ever get the time to have an actual discussion with her. For a moment he watched Sally's retreating back as she greeted other workers and was stopped to answer a few questions just by the mess hall doors. He hadn't noticed Duo staring at him.

"I'll be right back," Duo stated, already standing before Trowa could think about saying anything in return.

He watched the shorter man walk quickly across the room, navigating tables and 'good morning's' from friends, and finally was resting a hand on Sally's shoulder to grab her attention. Trowa could just barely see his face at it was angled slightly away while he seemed to explain something to the woman, but the features were set in a serious way that Trowa had not seen since meeting the man.

After a few seconds Sally was frowning, her eyes bouncing to Trowa for a brief moment, and then back to Duo who looked to be diagraming something in the air before them.  _The air vent,_ Trowa realized.

The two exchanged a few more words and Sally looked genuinely concerned, but Duo's face had managed to revert back into something care-free. By the time he'd made it back to their table, Trowa knew exactly what had been discussed.

"Sally's gonna look into it, maybe ask around. She might even pull the Rangers in if need be," Duo explained once seated again. "Mainly she's just glad you and the snake are both okay."

Trowa found it somewhat amusing that the woman was thinking of his own safety alongside that of the puff adder's. It made sense considering her profession; he still didn't understand how Kushrenada could have had a shred of suspicion for the woman.

"Who are the Rangers exactly?" Trowa wondered, having heard the term used quite often since his arrival.

Duo swiped at his bangs. "Oh, they're technically called the 'Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority,' but we just call 'em Rangers for short." He used air quotes around nearly every word in the sentence. "They pretty much regulate the entire NCA- conservation, tourism, development, relations- that kind of stuff. Like peacekeepers who ensure accountability on these lands, I guess you could say."

Trowa understood the need for some authority. Without it, the place would inevitably fall to social issues or miscommunications between tourists and conservationists and even the native Masai. These Rangers, he decided, seemed like a sure lead in finding any viable information on Zechs Merquise.

Just as Trowa was about to continue with the conversation in hopes of seeking out someone specific to talk to, the nearing footsteps of Chang Wufei interrupted his thoughts. The man was dressed in what Trowa could only assume as 'safari gear,' his entire body khaki, head-to-toe, save for the inky blackness of his slicked back hair and his slate aviators.

"I plan on heading out in fifteen," he said, his words sharp, but not unfriendly. "Meet at the front gate."

Duo held two fingers up to his temple and gave the man a mock solute. "You got it, 'Fei."

Trowa watched the other man contemplate whether or not to respond- or perhaps reprimand the use of nick-name- but then he was turning on his heel leaving them to their own devices once more. There was a small sense of easement as Trowa realized quickly that he was not the only one here that Duo had decided on a 'pet-name' for.

As puzzling as the braided man was, Trowa found himself in strange enjoyment trying to put the pieces back into order. That's what he was good at, after all; he'd not gotten to be a Investigative Agent for nothing- though this was probably not the priority Une would want him dwelling on. But for the moment he didn't seem to care.

* * *

Eighteen minutes later- because Duo apparently didn't mind his time very well- Trowa found himself in the backseat of a Land Rover with Wufei at the wheel. Every so often Duo would turn and crane his neck from the front seat to make a sarcastic comment in regards to the other man's driving skills or to point out an area of land that had some odd story or another attached to it.

The drive to their destination was not as long as the one from the Arusha Airport had been, but it was enjoyable half-listening to Duo ramble on, watching Wufei ignore him with a practiced ease, and taking in the unique scenery crashing by his window.

They'd made it across the flat planes that surrounded the Compound and were now traveling down a steep dirt road that twisted its way through scraggly bushes and sharp looking underbrush. Every once in a while the car would lurch and dip unexpectedly, but neither man in front of him flinched as Trowa presumed that the terrain was always rough and unpredictable. Just as he was getting somewhat used to the wall or thorns and thick grasses the scenery changed abruptly as Wufei turned a corner rather harshly.

Before them lay a mosaic of lush green grass spotted with dirt and patches of gold that stretched on for miles. Beyond that Trowa could see the immense rims of the Ngorongoro Crater creeping up through the low clouds swimming across the warm, blue sky. Across the vast plains there were herds of antelope and zebras grazing, their hooves kicking up dust, but otherwise creating a calm and peaceful scene ahead of them.

Though he'd known what he was getting himself into on this assignment, Trowa hadn't spent very much time thinking about just what he would encounter while in Tanzania. Suddenly the realization that he was surrounded by incredible natural beauty swarming with wild animals began to sink in.

"Pretty cool, huh?"

He hadn't noticed during his time of revelation and awe at his current surroundings that Duo had been spying on him from the front seat. If Trowa had been one to embarrass he might have felt some anxiety at being caught practically gaping. Instead he just nodded in agreement, watching as the man's braid was tucked down the back of his linen shirt for safe keeping in preparation for their impending task.

Trowa knew this was probably not the sort of thing he should be using his time for; if his commander had been in his ear she would have advised that he come up with some excuse to stay behind in order to look over the Compound with a fine tooth comb. But just having been a resident here for forty-eight hours Trowa knew better than to think it would be that easy. It was clear the way the Compound ran, one had to work to earn their keep and Trowa had no intention of becoming a free-loader or getting his cover blown that easily.

Wufei parked the vehicle near a patch of acacia trees and leaned to look back at Trowa as if sizing him up. After a few seconds he seemed satisfied with what he saw. "We'll be spotting leopards. There's some binoculars in the back," he instructed.

Duo and Wufei both hopped out of the vehicle, immediately surveying the surrounding area while Trowa rifled through some gear to come up with three pairs of binoculars.

The three men had been hiking inward presumably towards a watering hole that would be the center of animal activity when Duo's elbow found the side of Trowa's ribcage.

Trowa turned with brows furrowed only to see the other man looking at something through his binoculars. Curious as to the distraction, Trowa followed suit aiming towards the area Duo's body was pointed.

"Masai," the braided man said in one word explanation.

They had both stopped now though Wufei hadn't noticed just yet. Through his lenses Trowa could see a tall man draped in scarlet cloth carrying a heavy walking stick. Intermingling around him was a small herd of cattle.

Trowa wasn't sure why Duo had taken the time to show him this as it seemed to him the Masai were common in this area considering it was their home. By now Wufei had noticed their lack of presence at his back and turned, hands on his hips, waiting impatiently for them to catch up.

Apparently he had taken a glance as to what had made them stop and when Trowa was in ear shot he explained, "The Masai still cling to old ways, cattle herding being one of them."

"Yeah, those 'old ways' also happen to be a threat to endangered species too," Duo interjected, his words intended for Trowa, but his eyes watching Wufei, perhaps waiting for a reaction there.

The Chinese man shrugged slightly when Trowa gave him an imploring look. "In order for a young man to become a warrior they must first kill a lion with only the use of a knife, shield, and spear. It is a tradition- but Maxwell is somewhat correct, they  _can_  be as deadly as the poachers."

He seemed to begrudge admitting that Duo might have had a point. Wufei's voice had not changed during the entire exchange, but his eyes had grown darker- if that were even possible- and his demeanor had become almost defensive.

"Has there been a lot of poaching around here lately?" Trowa wondered, his expression the epitome of innocent curiosity.

He noticed Wufei's face harden for only a second. "Some," he replied.

"C'mon Chang," Duo spat out. "You know as well as I do that poachers have been hitting this area like crazy."

Trowa watched Wufei as he stared at their braided companion with an intense glare. He waited for his temper to flare, but with a single deep breath the man blinked and looked away.

"Let's keep moving," Wufei said as an end to the current conversation and turned to continue their trek.

Duo was at Trowa's side again. "I can always get him fired up talking about poaching."

If that had been 'fired up' Trowa wondered what 'stark raving mad' might look like on Chang Wufei. "Why is that?" he asked quietly.

Duo shook his head and then forced his vision forward. "That's a story for another day."

Because he didn't figure it was any of his business anyways Trowa didn't pry anymore than he already had; he didn't suspect Wufei in this anymore than he did Sally Po.

They'd not been walking for much longer- in fact Trowa could still see their vehicle in the distance from their current position- when Wufei's back stiffened ahead of them.

" _Duma_ ," he turned to hiss out at Duo.

Trowa had heard the word before in his preparation for this assignment; it was Swahili for 'cheetah.' For a brief moment Trowa realized once again just how immersed they were in the African wilderness- but Wufei wasn't reaching for the rifle strapped to his back, only moving faster along the path.

It didn't take Duo and Trowa long to realize what he'd seen. Before them lay the large, lean body of a spotted cat, but it was still and entirely unmoving.

Wufei was kneeling instantly searching the body for signs of injury. As Trowa and Duo gathered behind him he pulled a metallic dart from the animals neck. "Tranquilizer gun," he muttered. "Filled with poison."

Trowa surmised that he'd seen such a thing before by the look of pain in the man's dark eyes. Wufei's jaw clenched as he held the dart in a fist; it looked like he might suddenly let the anger he'd been holding in earlier out for everyone to see.

But then Duo was running a tentative hand along the cheetah's side. "The body's still warm. We must have interrupted."

"Which means whoever did this might still be around," Trowa supplied, suddenly feeling his body go on the defensive as his eyes scanned the area.

From behind them came a rustling noise in a thicket of undergrowth, the sound of running footsteps following suit. None of the three men needed to say a word to one another as their legs were suddenly taking them forward in pursuit of whoever had just tried to make a hasty getaway.

Wufei had grabbed the rifle from its place at his back and next to him Duo pulled a handgun from his waistband. Trowa felt suddenly naked, as unarmed as he was. But nothing could be done about that now.

Though Wufei had taken the lead initially, Duo seemed in need of the adrenaline kick the chase was suddenly providing. Trowa watched as the shorter man navigated the terrain with ease when they spotted a figure ducking under some branches as they neared the edge of a forest that skirted the flat grassland.

Trowa's eyes flicked to Wufei who suddenly seemed more hesitant, but Duo was barreling ahead of them, crashing through the brush and vaulting over some fallen logs. For a moment as they followed close at his heels Trowa wasn't even sure what they would accomplish if they were to catch the presumed killer; it wasn't as though they had an authority here- unless Wufei and Duo knew something that he did not.

They were only seconds behind Duo now, the man ahead of them by several yards, but the sound of running feet against the rough forest floor was enough to push the braided man even faster.

But then the ground was giving way beneath his feet, Trowa stopping only as Wufei's hand grabbed at his arm to pull him to an abrupt halt. They watched in horror as a length of rope wound its way around Duo's neck and pulled upwards, his body dangling dangerously. His hands clawed at the rope strung to an overhanging tree branch, but the noose only tightened with his weight.

If they didn't act fast Duo would be strangled to death.


	4. Animal Attraction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Trowa swallowed as Duo's eyes caught him staring, though the braided man didn't seem to mind as he took in Trowa's own body with a less than secretive gaze._

Trowa knew for certain that he'd never experienced this sensation of terror in his life. He'd never been one to get scared, not as a young child, not traveling in uncertainty to his next foster home, never as an agent, and not even so much when the puff adder had slithered up his half-naked body earlier that morning. No, he'd never felt terrified until this moment.

Duo's body dangled like a doll and after a few seconds of fighting against the noose around his neck he'd seemingly lost consciousness. Without another thought Trowa was moving forward, his hand swiping at a utility knife strapped to Wufei's belt, his legs pumping forward, one foot landing against the base of the tree to propel his body upwards. His hand grasped the rope above the other man's head, the branch bending with the new weight until he could swing their bodies towards solid ground. With a powerful arch he hacked through the rope, pulling it from Duo's neck with shaking hands.

Wufei was at his side immediately. "Maxwell," he barked out.

They both watched as Duo's chest jerked as his lungs pulled in air. His eyes flew open and his body was wracked with a rough fit of coughing. A red burn line was already forming against the skin of his neck, bruising soon to follow.

After a few more deep breaths, Duo's eyes focussed up towards Trowa, who's lap his head was currently resting on. "Hey, Tro. I owe ya one," he rasped out with a half smile.

Trowa actually found himself letting out a soft laugh. "Don't mention it," he responded, feeling himself becoming oddly giddy with relief and perhaps an oncoming adrenaline crash.

For a brief moment the way that Duo stared up into his features with half-lidded eyes of gratitude Trowa felt the most unfamiliar sensation of being flustered. Duo's smile had grown even more lopsided and he let his head rest heavily against the man beneath him, making Trowa cringe inwardly at the particular contact made.

Meanwhile Wufei had busied himself with studying the rope that had nearly killed the braided man moments before. "It's a snare," he explained, his voice low. "Used for leopards and cheetahs."

Duo managed to sit up on his elbow then, rubbing tenderly at his neck. "Do you suppose it's the same guys?"

Wufei's jaw clenched, his eyes boring into the ground just past the hidden pit where some footsteps could still be seen of the poachers they'd nearly caught up to. "I don't think it's a coincidence," he ground out.

Trowa realized that even though Duo had earlier mentioned the man being 'fired up' about poachers, perhaps he hadn't really witnessed that to its fullest extent just yet. He was about to say something when the far off sound of a jeep rumbling to life caught all of their attentions.

Wufei threw the rope down and stood in an attempt to go after them once more, but Duo put a hand awkwardly against the other man's knee. "Don't, you'll never catch up to them on foot 'Fei. And besides, you don't know how many more of these snares are around here."

There was a moment where Trowa thought the man might ignore the precaution, but then his fists were unclenching and he was nodding his head slowly. "Yes, you are correct. We need to get you back to the Compound now anyways to check for any other injuries."

Duo flicked his fingers and stood to stretch his legs in some form of a show. "Nah, don't worry about me- I'm damn near indestructible!"

"Indestructible?" Wufei scoffed with a half hidden smirk. "I suppose. This is what, the fourth near death experience for you in the last month?"

Duo's eyes rolled heavily upwards, but before he could come back to the man's well-placed sarcasm, Trowa was standing to place a hand on his arm. "Even if you feel okay now, your neck is going to be in a lot of pain pretty soon."

Wufei seemed grateful for that and lent down to pick up the knife Trowa had borrowed, strapping it back to his belt. "Besides, Sally will want to hear about this and when we get back to the car I can radio ahead to the Rangers."

Duo, realizing that he couldn't really argue with that, retrieved his own weapon from its fallen place on the forest floor and then they were fighting their way back through the underbrush, Trowa beginning to realize just how dangerous and unpredictable this assignment was turning out to be.

* * *

"You should know better, Wufei. Traipsing after those poachers is not your job."

Sally Po had caught them almost immediately upon arriving back to the Compound. Her words were sharp, but the look on her face portrayed more worry than anger.

Wufei gave a shrug but did not say anything in rebuttal. If Trowa had to guess, this was not the first time he'd been reprimanded for such behavior.

Sally gave Trowa a once over then, but upon finding no damage or explanation she moved quickly to Duo. "And you," she said, her voice raising slightly. "You nearly got yourself killed!"

Duo actually managed to look a bit sheepish. "I'm still alive, ain't I?"

Sally's hands flew up in the air, her head tilting back in an exasperated stance. "Why can't you just let the Rangers do their job?"

As if on cue a jeep pulled through the front gates, stopping off to the side, two young men emerging, one blond and one brunette, both wearing matching uniforms in altering shades of green.

The blond, who was shorter than the other by a few inches, but still slightly taller than Duo, approached the group with a smile. "Jambo!" he greeted.

Duo, a grin plastered on his face, moved to give the man a one armed hug. "Hey, Quat, how's it going?"

"Great, only two more weeks left of my probationary period before I'm official," he said, conversing with the braided man as if they were long-time friends.

Trowa stood back and observed the two men, Rangers he realized quickly. Both were armed and though the blond seemed less stiff than his companion, they each seemed to carry a weight of authority.

The brunette went to stand next to Sally. "They're the three who came across the poachers," she said to him, splaying her hand in a gesture towards the three men in question.

The Ranger nodded towards Wufei. "Chang," he acknowledged with a curt nod.

And then Duo was behind him, slapping a hand against the man's shoulder, the act making Trowa flinch involuntarily. He watched the man's dark blue eyes narrow for only a second at the contact.

"This is Ranger Yuy," Duo said leaning his head towards the brunette. He then flicked his chin towards the blond. "And Ranger Winner. Guys, this is Trowa Bloom, new hire."

Ranger Yuy, carefully removing Duo's hand from his shoulder as though it were something he rather not be touching, gave him the same nod of greeting he'd given Wufei.

Ranger Winner, on the other hand, approached him with a casual handshake. "You can call me Quatre, if you'd like," he added.

Duo was at his side then, suddenly, and Trowa began to wonder how the loud man seemed to move so quickly and silently on his feet. "He won't tell you, but you can call him Heero," he said gesturing towards the other Ranger who, though staring directly into Duo's eyes, seemed to be openly ignoring him.

But then 'Heero' was turning towards Wufei, cutting the introductions short, which Trowa didn't mind. "You didn't see faces? Get a license plate number? Anything?"

Wufei for a moment looked flushed, but then his features hardened. "No- I only have this." He opened his palm out to reveal the metallic dart they'd retrieved from the cheetah's body.

Heero's thoughts were unreadable as he turned to Duo then. "And you got caught in a snare I see?"

Duo rubbed at his neck again and winced slightly. "Think it could be the poachers?"

Heero's shoulders raised slightly, but Quatre was the one to answer. "The Masai use snares like that all of the time. It would be hard to say without investigating further."

For a moment Trowa thought that Ranger Yuy might be annoyed at having been interrupted, but he nodded along in agreement of his subordinate, the man having apparently said what he had been preparing to explain.

Trowa, his interest peaking just as the investigation seemed to be getting underway, had his thoughts interrupted as a hand on his shoulder pulled him back to reality. He turned to face a petite girl with short black hair trying to get his attention.

"Trowa Bloom?" she inquired and when he nodded she proceeded. "You have a telephone call. If you'll follow me you can use the private extension."

As the girl started off he looked up to see Duo chatting with Quatre, presumably about the NCAA training program he was completing, but when he saw Sally give him a nod in understanding he turned begrudgingly to wonder who it was that would be contacting him here in such a plain means of communication.

Several meters away they walked up the steps of the large, victorian house he'd admired the morning before and into a room off the main entryway, an office of sorts. The girl picked up the phone in there, an old rotary style one that Trowa wasn't sure he'd ever actually seen in person before, and after a few words to the other line she handed it off to him and closed the door behind her.

Trowa stared at the receiver for a heartbeat before putting it up to his ear. "Hello?"

"Barton!" came the voice of Treize Kushrenada on the other end. Trowa stiffened, and though he figured there wasn't a tap on the Compound's phones he was still irritated at the man's tactless attitude.

"What is it?" Trowa asked, low and slightly annoyed. He'd just gotten to a point where information would be flowing, the Rangers certainly had been working on this case for months- it would have been unlikely that they hadn't come across Merquise at least once or twice during his stay.

"Don't sound so excited to hear from me," Kushrenada groused. "I'm just checking in."

"Well everything is going fine," Trowa responded, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible in case anyone in the house might overhear.

"Working on any reports?"

"Negative. Nothing to report as of yet."

Trowa heard a rough sigh from the other end. "You sure you can handle this?"

The fingers holding the phone curled almost painfully around handle. "Yes," he bit back.

For a moment Trowa had considered telling him about the several mishaps that had already taken place involving animals and poachers, but he decided pointedly to keep that information to himself for now.

"Fine," Kushrenada answered, sounding bored. "Over and out."

Trowa didn't bother responding, only hung up the phone, probably slightly harder than he should have. When he exited the small office he hadn't expected to be met with the girl that had earlier escorted him in.

She smiled softly up at him. "I'm not snooping I promise. I just have to lock up." She showed him a set of keys and then proceeded to shut the office door, locking it quickly. Trowa wondered vaguely what might be in there that the room had to be locked at all hours of the day.

After her task was complete the girl turned back around and they headed towards the front door together.

"I'm Hilde, by the way," she introduced herself as they walked back outside. For a second Trowa was going to respond with his own name, but then realized that she already knew that information. He had been in so many introductory situations lately that it was just becoming habit; that thought proved to annoy him some.

"I'm glad Duo got a new roommate," Hilde added then. "I think he's been kind of-  _lonely_ \- lately."

Trowa wasn't sure what to say to that comment, but before he'd had time to even try to think of something Hilde was waving her hand and explaining that she had other duties to attend to and that hopefully they would meet again soon and that she was glad he was here. She spoke almost as rapidly as Duo did.

To his irritation, by the time Trowa had made his way back towards the front of the Compound, both Rangers had disappeared. But they had been replaced with a new group of people, several men dressed in robes of sapphire with beaded jewelry in shades of black, red, blue, and white.

Duo was there greeting him then and Trowa turned towards him with a quirked brow. "Masai?"

The man's braid twitched as he nodded. "Warriors," he said, pointing to the shafts they carried that were topped with sharp, metal spearheads.

Both of them stood watching for a moment as the group of Masai walked over to where Wufei was busy conversing with Sally- probably still going on about the poachers they'd failed to catch earlier. When one of the native men started to say something to him with a large grin the Chinese man looked annoyed, but turned towards the group anyways.

"They know Wufei?" Trowa guessed.

Duo nodded, smirking. "Oh yeah. They like to come make trouble for him sometimes- totally harmless, but its fun to watch him interact with them."

Trowa turned to watch the men who appeared to be joking with their shorter acquaintance much to his displeasure. "How well do they know one another?"

Duo turned away then and started walking towards the dormitory area. "They go back a long ways. Wufei's mom was a missionary and teacher when he was just a kid- he essentially grew up with the Masai," he explained and then waved a hand over his shoulder. "Come on, I gotta wash Raza, you can help."

Trowa followed, remembering once again the duties of his cover here at the Compound. "So they're like brothers," he said in response to Duo's earlier information. "That's why they like to make trouble."

"You got it." Duo grinned up at him. "When Wufei got older his mom sent him away to boarding school in China somewhere, but he came back to Tanzania after he got married."

They'd almost made it to Raza's pen by then and they could hear and see the elephant trumpeting their arrival. Trowa's brows shot up at the news. "Wufei is married?"

But at that question Duo turned away from him, suddenly quiet. Trowa realized perhaps it was not information he was in need of knowing and was about to redact his question when Duo turned back to him with a matter-of-fact look in his indigo eyes.

"He was- though I never knew Meiran. She died a few years back," Duo said, his voice heavy.

Trowa suddenly felt a new sensation run across his chest and realized he actually knew very little about anyone at the Compound, even Duo himself. "That's terrible," he found himself saying.

Duo shrugged. "The worst thing about it is that it happened while they were out on safari- they were both new hires for Sally at the time- and Meiran got shot."

Trowa's mouth formed a grim line and Duo's brows knitted together. They'd made it to Raza, but they had both managed to ignore her incessant noises for attention until now. Duo reached a hand out to pat her trunk, not looking towards Trowa.

"Wufei says it was poachers who shot her, but it was never proven. In the end it was ruled an accident," he concluded, staring up at the rough gray skin of the slightly swaying animal in front of him.

Trowa was not sure how to respond to this, if at all. Surely this was none of his business, but it certainly allowed him to think about Wufei in a new light. The man's intensity seemed less muddied now.

Finally, as the seconds seemed to pass away with Duo's eyes engrained on Raza, Trowa spoke up. "He stayed here, even after her death?"

He watched Duo take a careful breath in order to turn with somewhat of a smile back on his face. "This is his home, I guess. Now you can understand Wufei's feelings towards poachers."

Trowa nodded at that, realizing the reasoning behind Duo's somewhat melancholy anecdote. Before anything more could be said, however, the man's braid was flicking in the air as he walked toward the gate door to the elephant's enclosure.

"Bucket's are near the water pump 'round back," Duo called to him as he unlocked the hatch. "Should be a hose back there too. I'll let you be in charge of the water today so long as you make sure we both don't get soaked- that tends to happen around Raza."

He'd given the instructions with such a manic grin that Trowa had a feeling that the hot sun writhing down on the back of his neck was soon to beaten back by the impending elephant bath. But he wasn't sure if it would be at the will of Raza or of Duo Maxwell just yet.

* * *

By the hour the sun was low enough in the sky to blind him every time he turned his head a particular direction, Trowa had found his clothing finally drying out after the water apocalypse that had been Raza's bath time.

"You ever worked with animals before, Tro?" Duo wondered as they sat together in the shade of the enclosure that held the litter of cheetah cubs Trowa had previously been introduced to. The man's braid was still damp and it had become quite a game amongst the small spotted animals- to Duo's great displeasure.

Trowa, who was holding the smallest of the litter to his chest while she suckled at a bottle of formula, shrugged weakly. "I have a little experience," he responded trying his best to not blatantly lie, but also adding some padding to his current cover story.

Duo watched the little cheetah with a warm smile. "Well all the animals here seem to really gravitate towards you- and that's a good thing. You know, when we first got Raza she wanted nothing to do with half of us, even me. But she warmed up to you right away."

Trowa couldn't help but to feel somewhat flattered by the compliment, perhaps more due to the man who was giving it to him than the actual sentiment behind it. But it was true that he'd always had a fondness for animals, just never the means to interact with them very often.

He scratched under the cub's chin as she finished off the bottle with one final suckle. "It's unfortunate that poaching seems to be so prevalent here."

Duo frowned then. "Yeah, it sucks. Damn, greedy people."

Trowa was going to attempt to inquire about any conversation he'd missed earlier when he'd been pulled away from their conversation with the Rangers when there was a rattling knock against the metal fencing in front of them.

Sally rested her fingers through a couple of the chain links. "Hey, Duo, when you're done there I've got a favor to ask you."

"Anything," Duo said, pulling his braid away from one of the pesky cubs while still looking in the woman's direction.

"The truck needs looking at," Sally explained, her genial vision drifting to the sleepy looking baby Trowa was still holding. "I think the u-joints need replacing."

Duo raised his pointer finger. "Ah, and you thought 'who here is the best mechanic for the job?' And of course you came up with Duo Maxwell."

Sally laughed. "No, you're just the only one around here that seems to have too much extra time on his hands- playing with the cheetah cubs and all." Her eyes sparkled with amusement.

Duo's mouth hung open for a second before it closed in a pout. "Hey, it was feeding time. S'not my fault they decided to use my hair as a chew toy!"

Sally ignored that, turning back to Trowa. "You're more than welcome to help if he'll let you. Might be good to have another person who knows how to deal with that heap of junk around here."

Duo, forgoing his childlike pouting, gave her a salute, his grin quickly turning to a grimace as he was attacked once again by not one, but two, cubs this time. Trowa couldn't stop himself from chuckling under his breath.

* * *

The Compound housed a rather large cement floored garage to keep their array of vehicles in. It was a vaulted space with ample room to store extra supplies and house anything a mechanic could dream of using. But the one disadvantage, and perhaps the most irksome, was how poorly ventilated the space was.

Duo had pulled one of the large metallic doors up, but the lack of windows proved to provide little room for air to flow so a cross breeze would be only something to dream of. Nonetheless he and Trowa had made the most of the situation, running a small electric fan that sat on a workbench near the truck and leaving their shirts to hang on an old folding chair in the corner.

Trowa was no stranger to mechanical work, having done enough of it during his years working tirelessly on a '93 Ford Taurus- the only piece of crap he could afford to get him to class while at university. But still he'd let Duo take the lead as the man seemed to be more than raring to. It was clear where his roommate's passions lied here on the Compound and being around the animals was just one of them.

Duo was on his back beneath the old, jacked-up truck, rolling out occasionally on a 'creeper' to exchange tools or retrieve a part from Trowa. His braid had been tied in some semblance of a knot at the back of his head with his bandana and each time he rolled into view he managed to have even more grease and dirt marring his tanned skin.

During the project Trowa had found that Duo apparently felt more at ease around his new roommate and had resorted to using their time together to ask a myriad of questions, some harmless while others bordering on inappropriate. But Trowa had managed to answer them all with stoic ease up until now.

"You have a girlfriend back home?" Duo had asked, his voice muffled as he'd just scooted back under.

Trowa found himself stuck staring at an oil stain on the cement beneath his feet. Of all questions, why was this the one giving him any grief?

"Hey, earth to Trowa. You gotta girl?" Duo had slid back out, nearly knocking into the other man's kneeling legs. "Or maybe a  _boyfriend?_ "

At that Trowa smirked down at him, reaching out to wipe at a fresh spot of grease on Duo's rather pointed nose. "No. No boyfriend- at the moment."

He watched as Duo's eyes widened a fraction of an inch as the understanding clicked into place. "Yeah, well, guess we don't really have time for that stuff anyways," he muttered, rolling away. Trowa was almost certain that he'd caught a hint of a flush beneath the grime.

"You're asking all these questions," Trowa responded shortly after as Duo seemed to be fiddling with a particular tough piece beneath the truck. "But I hardly know a thing about  _you_."

"Eh," Duo muttered, pulling himself back out and sitting up to lean forearms against his knees. "Not much to know about little old me."

If Trowa had been a more prying type of person he might have pressed the conversation, but instead he settled with watching Duo attempt to wipe his face with an already dirty rag. They had both built up a sheen of sweat on their bodies and it was hard for him not to stare at the other man's lean arms and subtle six-pack. He also managed to catch a second tattoo, a black shaded rosary clinging to his ribcage.

Trowa swallowed as Duo's eyes caught him staring, though the braided man didn't seem to mind as he took in Trowa's own body with a less than secretive gaze. Upon receiving this assignment he'd not thought something like this would come into play, an attractive roommate that seemed to continue to haunt his dreams every time he closed his eyes. It was silly, like he was some hormonal fifteen-year old again, but he couldn't fight the feeling of excitement as he watched those indigo eyes roving over his chest in appreciation for what they saw there.

"You've got a lot of scars," Duo commented then, the silence finally being broken.

Trowa looked down as if he'd not remembered the marks being there. He shrugged. "I suppose so." He didn't need to be telling stories of how those scars had gotten there; bullet wound on his left shoulder from his first undercover assignment, burn on his side from a napalm scare, jagged line curling around his abdomen from a well aimed knife.

He noticed that Duo had a few himself, but he was not so bold as to point it out. Trowa watched the man wipe his forehead again. Duo leaned forward reaching past Trowa into the toolbox on his right side and for a brief moment they were only centimeters apart, the heat from their warm skin radiating between one another.

Then Duo pulled back, his unruly bangs brushing against Trowa's shoulder. Their eyes met and the look Trowa saw was purely predatorial, like something he might come across while surveying the Serengeti. It was a challenge, a question, an offer, but then after a few heartbeats of stillness Duo leaned back further and averted his eyes slightly.

Trowa told himself to look away, but the way the man's mouth curved into a smirk, the way his long eyelashes looked in the dim light provided by the slowly setting sun outside, caused something within him to snap.

He grabbed Duo's wrist and pulled him forward, the other man's body propelled fast due to the device on which he still sat and suddenly they were tumbling backwards until Trowa was lying on his back with Duo straddling his hips.

The predatory gaze had changed to one of shock as if he'd not seen such a turn of events coming. Perhaps he'd just been teasing, maybe Trowa had read to signs all wrong, but then Duo's mouth was against his own, rough at first and then tentative and soft.

Trowa found his hands against the other man's back, feeling every dip and curve and scar there. The kiss became more feral then, mouths opening to reveal searching tongues and sharp teeth. Duo sucked against his bottom lip and Trowa couldn't stop the soft moan that formed in the back of his throat.

But then, just as rapidly as it had begun, the kiss was over as Duo pushed against his chest, pulling away with a look of realization.

"I'm sorry." He was standing then before Trowa could comprehend what was happening. He could feel himself, half-hard in his pants, and he could see for himself Duo's own mirrored reaction to their abrupt kiss.

Duo was grabbing for his shirt. "The truck's good to go if Sally asks- I actually finished it like an hour ago, but I was just fiddling around because- well I- I'm just going to head back to the dorms, okay? But you go to dinner. I'll see you tonight?"

Trowa wasn't sure why he was making a point to ask him, they were roommates after all, of course he would be seeing him tonight. But Trowa just sat there and nodded his head a few times and then Duo, in his sudden flustered haste, was gone.


	5. Manyatta

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Their bodies nearly as close as they had been a day ago in the garage, Duo leaned in towards Trowa, his gaze sharpening, though his muscles seemed to be relaxing into the new position. "I'm sorry if I seemed like an idiot last night."_

This, along with his entire day of activities, was something that Une would have probably reprimanded him for. He was here in Tanzania on assignment, he was to investigate the animal smuggling, Zechs Merquise's mysterious disappearance, get-in-get-out, write up his report and then go back to his boring, mundane life in the states.

That's how it was  _supposed_  to go, but now Trowa had conceded to the fact that it was  _not_  going to be that easy and for some reason he was okay with that.

When Trowa had gotten back to their room the night before he'd been anxious to discuss the earlier amorous activities with Duo, concerned that he'd been too forward, considering they barely knew one another. But when he'd opened their door he'd found Duo asleep- or at least pretending to be- in his bunk already.

The next morning he'd heard Duo getting ready, but had decided to give the man his space for now, only rising from his bed when the braided man had left the room. By the time Trowa had dressed he found Duo not by Raza's enclosure like he'd first guessed, but talking with the two Rangers he'd met the day before near the Compound's gate.

When Duo saw him coming he smiled widely and waved him over, not a trace of the anxiety that Trowa had witnessed the evening before anywhere on the man.

"Heero and Quatre are going to the Masai village today," Duo explained in rapid fire. "Yesterday you seemed interested in the warriors and they've said we can come along with them."

Trowa looked up at the Rangers to see Quatre beaming towards him, nearly as animated as Duo, and Heero giving him a stone look that didn't appear to be  _too_  unfriendly. He nodded his head in agreement and then Duo clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe you'll learn something," he said, with a sly look in his eyes. "Hopefully more than you did last night helping me fix the truck."

Anything Trowa might have said in reply had gotten stuck in the back of his throat. This man before him might have been more confusing than the case he was here to investigate.

The road to the Masai village was just long enough that they needed to use the Ranger's jeep for easy passage. Duo and Trowa sat together in the back, but the braided man busied himself with studying the scenery that they passed the entire way there instead of bothering to speak with the man he'd kissed the night before.

Trowa realized easily that now with Quatre and Heero accompanying them,  _that_  particular conversation was going to have to wait. Perhaps this had been a calculated move on Duo's part- or perhaps not.

The Masai village, or  _manyatta_  as it was referred to in Swahili, was almost unnoticeable upon first glance as its interior was encircled by tall branches that formed a natural looking fence. But as Heero pulled up to a small opening Trowa could see the many thatched huts hidden inside.

As the four men exited the vehicle they were greeted by a thin teenaged boy carrying a spear. Trowa recognized him as one of the Masai who had visited Wufei at the Compound yesterday. Quatre was the first to reach the younger man who smiled widely as they approached.

"This is En-Kai," Quatre said, waving towards the teen. "En-Kai, this is Trowa. And you already know Duo."

Trowa nodded in greeting and then watched as his new acquaintance stuck out a fist towards Duo who promptly returned the gesture, their knuckles hitting against each other. It was almost laughable to see the two extreme cultures colliding in such a way.

"I have business with Santamo. It shouldn't take long," Heero informed them all briefly before making his way inside, leaving even Quatre behind though the man looked as though he'd expected that.

"Tro came to visit your manyatta," Duo explained to En-Kai. "Is that cool?"

The teenager smiled brightly. "Of course, we are always glad for new visitors."

Before Trowa could respond a group of children had seemed to manifest around them. They tugged at his arms and clothing pulling him forward chanting " _Karibu*!_ "

Trowa couldn't fight the incredulous smile that came across his lips as he met Duo's gaze. "You go," the braided man said. "I'm gonna stay here for a bit and talk to Quat about something."

Laughing and jogging ahead of him the children managed to pull Trowa through the open doorway of the fence. He had not been certain of what to expect, but he was led between several small huts and past an empty coral, one presumably used for their herd of cattle, and towards a slightly larger hut on the other side.

The children showed him beaded jewelry and carved walking sticks like the one he'd seen yesterday in the Ngorongoro Crater. Trowa did his best job to act impressed with each passing amusement the young Masai provided him with. He'd not had the chance to interact with anyone quite so young since his days in the foster care system.

When they finally led him back outside he was met with the bright smile of En-Kai once again. The teen managed to shoo away the younger boys and girls, offering Trowa a light apology which he promptly refused.

"How long have you been in Africa?" En-Kai asked then, his eyes flicking towards the village's entry. Trowa wondered vaguely if the boy was there to keep him busy until Duo was finished with his necessary conversation with Ranger Winner.

"This is my third day," Trowa responded, surveying his surroundings for a second time until his eyes came to rest on the sharp spear the teen was carrying. It reminded him about what Wufei had said earlier about Masai traditions.

He pointed towards the weapon. "You have to kill a lion single-handedly," Trowa said and En-Kai nodded, his smile not fading. "Is that allowed by the Rangers?"

Trowa watched the boy contemplate the implication. He studied the ground before answering, "Not 'allowed,'" he answered softly. "But often Rangers will turn a head to tradition. Milliardo was to go with me to take pictures, but he has not been seen at the manyatta in some time."

Trowa stared at the teen, trying hard not to gape. "Milliardo Peacecraft?" he asked, doing his best to sound as casual as possible even with the new sensation of blood suddenly rushing to his head.

"Ndiyo," he answered with the Swahili word for 'yes.' "When he was with the Masai he lived there."

Trowa followed the teens pointing finger towards a small hut near the edge of the village wall. Unlike the other huts this one was constructed more of grass and smaller branches, something less permanent like a tent of sorts.

On their way to the manyatta Trowa had not even contemplated that such a breakthrough might be made here. He could feel the level of bubbling questions rising at the back of his throat, but he managed to calmly swallow them down.

"He take pictures," En-Kai explained then, probably confused by the look resonating on Trowa's features. "He come, he go- but now he has not come back."

Trowa realized that Merquise might be more than just a missing person at this stage in the game, but he resolved to think on a more positive note. He gestured towards the hut. "Can I go in?"

En-Kai's shoulders raised up and down once, his face reflecting just how bizarre Trowa probably appeared to him now. But still, he led the man towards the shack that proved to be only a few square feet in size. Trowa had to bend down and lean on his knees to survey the small area.

Just then there was a yell of En-Kai's name and the youth gestured that he would return in a few minutes. Trowa didn't mind, in fact he realized that now was his chance to investigate the closest thing he had to evidence thus far, but he would have to work fast.

The hut did not boast much other than a few cow hides and a shelf holding a bucket that seemed to serve as an ash tray and a lone tube of toothpaste. He crawled forward, patting along the makeshift bed, but he came up empty. He went to back up but his foot connected with the shelve's leg sending the bucket to the dirt floor behind him.

Trowa swore beneath his breath, but when he'd managed to turn around his eyes picked up something metallic from within the dirt and cigarette buts now only partially filling the overturned bucket. He grabbed at the corner with his thumb and forefinger, pulling out a small palm-top computer. Trowa felt an emotion akin to excitement well in his gut just before the sound of footsteps alerted him to a presence outside.

He pocketed his latest discovery and then pulled himself from the tiny hut to see that Duo was just making his way past the gate, presumably to come find him. When he saw Trowa he waved him over.

"We're gonna go back with Quat. Yuy's got more business to take care of then he thought so he'll just meet us back at the Compound later," Duo told him, only for a moment registering the dirt clinging to Trowa's knees and palms.

When they were back in the jeep and traveling down the dirt road back towards the Compound Trowa leaned forward, his thoughts collected well enough in hopes of getting some answers he'd been hoping for since his arrival.

"En-Kai told me that Milliardo Peacecraft, the photojournalist, used to stay with the Masai sometimes," he said rather conversationally, directing the information to the blond as he drove. "But he said he hadn't seen him in a while now."

Quatre's usually genial face looked grim. "He's been missing for quite a while. The police have been trying to locate him- unsuccessfully as of yet."

"The police?" Trowa asked in mock surprise. He could feel Duo's eyes staring at him, but did not turn to meet them.

He watched Quatre nod. "That is more their territory. The NCAA have their hands full with the animal smuggling and poaching going on right now."

That was the answer Trowa had expected from the genuine man. As they crested a small hill, he stopped the jeep and let it idle for a moment. The man gestured towards a small body of water down below. "We haven't had enough rain and water is scarce. The animals can only go so many places to drink- that makes it all the more easy for the poachers to know where to strike." His features hardened suddenly as he stared down at the watering hole. "But of course, to capture poachers, then so do  _we_."

* * *

The rest of the day had been grueling, not especially because of any of the laborious tasks that Trowa had to perform, but because the only thing he could manage to think about was the palm-top he'd hidden away within his duffle in the dormitory just before lunch.

It was dinner time now and because he'd not been tied to Duo all afternoon for once, he'd managed to grab something quick and then steal away to their room for some much anticipated private reconnoissance.

The palm-top computer was something Trowa recognized from his own stash of gadgets- something used normally for communication and report filing, but he hoped the small piece of tech would grant him with more than just an 'all clear' message to Une.

He knew what he'd find upon opening the device; his own palm-top was heavily encrypted and he'd even managed to apply a few extra security measures of his own after he'd received the pass-codes provided by the CBP. It wouldn't surprise him if such an agent as Merquise would have done the same, if not more.

Trowa himself was an adequate hacker, young and knowledgable in the realms of technology, though he'd never had any formal training in that area of course. But he'd been on enough assignments and been partnered with enough competent agents in his rookie year to understand the finer components and skills of breaching someone else's securities. He at least gave himself that much credit.

According to his watch so far it had been just under thirty minutes and Trowa was beginning to think that he'd put too much stock into his personal hacking skills. He'd easily made it past the palm-top's main security settings, knowing how the CBP systems worked, but Merquise's tech was much more advanced than anything he'd ever worked on before. The man appeared to be quite private, or else just plain paranoid.

Trowa had become so engrossed with the process of trying to put his mind in a position to think like Zechs Merquise that he'd just barely heard the footsteps approaching the door in time to stash the small computer beneath his pillow. Certainly not the safest nor first place he would have chosen if he'd had more time and hadn't let his guard down so easily, but it would have to do.

He was just beginning to mentally chastise his carelessness when the door opened to reveal his roommate, a toothpick clenched between grinding teeth, his eyes glazed in thought. Duo looked tired from the day, but upon seeing Trowa his face lightened somewhat, to the other man's ongoing confusion.

"Hey, you're just the man I've been looking for," Duo said, words spilling from around still clenched teeth. He closed the door behind him and made his way to stand in front of Trowa hands on his hips, displaying the thin muscles of his arms proudly in the tight tank top he was currently wearing, his other shirt tied haphazardly around his waist for safe keeping.

Trowa couldn't help but put on a face of utter perplexity. He was still getting used to the way Duo spoke. They were roommates, did he really have that hard of a time tracking him back to their _shared_ room?

"There's somethin' going on and you're not being straight with me." Duo pointed at him with a sharp finger as if he'd been caught red handed- which he almost had been.

Trowa kept his expression neutral. "Is something wrong?"

He watched in slight amusement as the other man's eyebrows raised and then furrowed deeply above the indigo studying him with great suspicion. Duo ripped the toothpick from his mouth. "Look, Tro- you don't talk a lot, but you sure do ask a lot of questions about that guy, Peacecraft. But I can't quite figure out why you'd be so interested in him. Sorry, but you don't strike me as a photography aficionado. And then today you're snoopin' around the Masai village- yeah, don't think I didn't notice that. Asking Quat about stuff that he's not really supposed to be discussing-"

During the man's speech-turn-rant Trowa began to feel his muscles freeze over. He'd dealt with complications like this before, chinks in his armor, debris in the spokes, but of course those outliers had never been in the form of someone he'd just recently made out with on the greasy cement of a garage floor. He wondered if he'd actually been so easily compromised, perhaps the phone line had been tapped when Kushrenada had made contact before, or maybe-

"-and I've got this theory," Duo was saying now, looking him directly in the eye. Trowa did not flinch. "You know this Peacecraft guy don't you? And you're out lookin' for him like some kind of amateur P.I."

It had not been the 'theory' that Trowa had been expecting. He slowly let out the breath he'd been holding in, still not letting Duo read his expression. The braided man had stopped, waiting for an answer, a confirmation or else a wide-eyed expression of innocence and bewilderment.

Trowa decided to appease him, as Duo had stopped just short of the truth and maybe this could work to his advantage.

"I suppose you could say Milliardo and I used to work together," he responded with a bob of his head. Still not an admission or a lie. He wasn't out of the woods just yet, but at least the man hadn't pinned him as a Customs Agent right off the bat. That would have proved to complicate things just a little bit too much.

There was a smug look on the braided man's face. "Figures. I kinda had you pegged from the beginning."

Trowa wondered at that, remembering all the times Duo had given him a once-over and realizing perhaps he'd not played his part as 'wide-eyed animal loving university student' quite as well as he'd first thought. But then again, Duo could be just as easily bluffing- that seemed like something the man might be very good at.

He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly in response. "I'm still here to work. But looking into Milliardo Peacecraft's disappearance and the animal smuggling he'd apparently gotten caught up in is also a prerogative."

There, he'd said it. Laid out his entire undercover assignment on the table, no more hiding his cards, not more poker face. It felt good to get the information off his chest, even if it was still only revealed as a half-truth.

Duo's face registered an expression that told Trowa he hadn't been expecting quite an easy confession. The man pursed his lips and folded his arms over his chest, the muscles stiffening. "What were you looking for at the manyatta today?"

Trowa blinked. "What?"

Duo let out a rough sigh. "Look, a lot of weird shit has been happening around here lately, not limited to your little play-date with our puff adder. I'm just as invested in catching those poachers as anyone is around here, even if Sally says it's the Ranger's job and not our own. If you've got something-  _anything_ \- then I want in."

Trowa found words catch in the back of his throat for the second time that day. He swallowed, still trying to keep his expression as emotionless as possible. Duo wanted to help him investigate. The man he'd kissed, the man that followed him into his dreams, the man with knowledge of the area, with connections in the NCAA...

"Alright," Trowa said as he attempted to reign in the sudden thoughts coursing through his brain. Duo unfurled his arms and again seemed slightly surprised that it had been so easy.

Trowa reached for the palm-top beneath his pillow, cursing the CBP's regulations and the annoying voice of Une at that back of his conscience with a slight smirk. He tossed the small device into Duo's fumbling hands.

"You know anything about breaching firewalls and personal security?" Trowa asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

Duo stared down at the tech in his hands, but after a few seconds of realization his lips pulled back into a smile that Trowa had yet to witness. "Piece of cake."

It was Trowa's turn now to be surprised as Duo found a seat next to him on the lower bunk, opening the computer and setting to work with quick fingers and a sharp gaze that Trowa had not been expecting.

"This belonged to Peacecraft?" Duo asked, biting against his lower lip in concentration.

Trowa nodded, but realized the other man wasn't watching and then added a muttered, "yes."

He watched the palm-top's screen flashing against the other man's eyes as he worked. Trowa wanted desperately to ask how Duo knew anything about hacking, but seeing as how he himself could not get even  _close_  to where Duo was he decided not to bother.

It was going on ten minutes now and Trowa had leaned back against the cinder block wall while Duo typed away with an odd flair of excitement. He was slowly realizing that though he might require Duo's help with this particular task that perhaps inviting him to investigate further had been somewhat of a rash decision.  _No going back now,_  he grumbled inwardly.

"There we go, baby," Duo hissed, his fingers hitting a few more keystrokes before he leaned back from his hunched position. "Hmm, looks like a foreign language to me. I don't think it's Swahili though."

Trowa sat up then to grab the palm-top. He stared at the screen only to find many combinations of letters that he could not understand. It didn't look completely scrambled, so he agreed with Duo's initial assessment. But somehow he thought there must be more.

"Maybe it's a code," Trowa said, staring at the letters that came together to form words he'd never seen before. He swept through a few more screens, but this was the only thing that had not been wiped from the device.  _But why?_

Duo's brows knitted together next to him. He looked over to read Trowa's watch. "I don't mean to interrupt this new fun we're having here, but I've gotten wind of a possible ambush going down tonight. Not something I'm really s'posed to know- or tell you about as a matter of fact- but-"

"Do we have a vehicle?" Trowa turned towards him, setting the palm-top aside for this new means of investigation. Their in-comprehensive findings could wait for now.

Duo shrugged. "Got a couple of old dirt bikes the Compound won't miss for a few of hours. If you're up to it that is."

Trowa frowned at that, but when Duo's lips curled upwards he remembered the other man's penchant for sarcasm.

"There's just one more thing we need to address here." Duo was staring at him straight on now, having turned his body to sit cross legged on the bed.

"And that is?" Trowa quirked a brow, his thoughts already on the impending 'ambush-' whatever that might mean- they seemed to be crashing in a short time.

Their bodies nearly as close as they had been a day ago in the garage, Duo leaned in towards Trowa, his gaze sharpening, though his muscles seemed to be relaxing into the new position. "I'm sorry if I seemed like an idiot last night."

The braided man's voice was low and rumbled into Trowa's mind which was rapidly setting off alarm bells that sounded at the base of his skull. Duo leaned forward another inch. "I mean- I liked kissing you. I  _really_  liked kissing you."

Trowa knew he shouldn't, he'd already let the man in on his investigation, had nearly lost his cover entirely, had kissed him once in a compromising position already- but he couldn't stop his body from leaning into the touch of Duo's fingers that had suddenly reached out towards his forearm, brushing the skin there and sending sparks through to the bone.

Trowa was on him at once, pushing Duo's body down onto the thin mattress, their legs tangling briefly as their mouths crushed together. Duo's tongue flicked out to taste and explore and then suddenly the hot mouth was coursing along his neck, finding his pressure point and sucking-  _hard_.

Shit, this was not good. They needed to focus,  _he_  needed to focus, but Trowa couldn't stop his hands from running down Duo's lean chest, down further towards his sharp hips. He couldn't stop his body from grinding down as Duo's teeth found the lobe of his ear.

Trowa buried his face against Duo's own neck then, kissing and nipping downwards towards his collar bone. The sound that the other man emitted sent a shiver straight to his groin. He found his fingers wrapping between the plates of hair at the back of Duo's head, feeling just how soft each strand was against the pads of his electrified fingertips.

Duo found his mouth again and they kissed more gently, their lips sticking together slightly as the man below him pulled away. Trowa opened his eyes to find Duo's own half-lidded, staring up at him with a heavy smile that had been lost in his anxiety the night before.

"We should go," Duo whispered. He thrust upwards with a smirk, causing Trowa to clench his eyes at the contact. "We'll have time later."

Trowa's hands were reluctantly untangling themselves from Duo's hair. He rolled off of the smaller man and reached up to touch his left ear, feeling the soft indentation of Duo's sharp teeth there.

Duo stood then, but threw a wink back over his shoulder before retrieving his gun from beneath a stack of t-shirts in their shared dresser. "Told ya I bite."

Trowa couldn't fight down the groan that followed suit.

* * *

The night enveloping them was silent, most of the Compound's residents already in bed for the evening, or else enjoying some leisure time in the facility's rec room. Duo had bestowed upon his roommate a pistol and small hunting knife when Trowa had expressed his current weaponless state with some ill-ease. Who knew what they would encounter out on in the African wilderness, especially under the blanket of night.

Duo had led him to the garage that still harbored the memories of the day before, both men sharing a conspiring glance before grabbing the two mud covered dirt-bikes that Duo had mentioned earlier. They walked their vehicles as quietly as possible until they were several yards out of the Compound's front gate.

"We'll take these as far as the ravine and then head the rest of the way on foot," Duo said as he swung a leg over the seat of his bike. Trowa didn't say anything, but followed suit as at this point his life was in Duo's hands and he wasn't perfectly sure how to feel about that thought just yet.

The bikes rumbled to life, engines coughing and revving, and then they were off down the road they'd traveled with Wufei not long ago. The terrain was rough and because Trowa did not know it as well as Duo did he at first was a bit more hesitant with his speed and navigation. But the night air felt good as it swiped against his skin, calming the flush he'd just recently gotten control over; it didn't take long before he and Duo were neck and neck along the path, the braided man inching forward every so often in a show of playful challenge that Trowa obligingly accepted.

Though the night was dark, the scenery flashing by them was lit with a blue hugh as the large moon loomed over the barren looking lands and the stars shone heavily above them, no light pollution to block their expansive existence against the navy blue sky.

The headlights of their bikes illuminated a ravine on their right, their stopping point from what Duo had mentioned before. After another quarter-mile they both brought their bikes to a halt near its edge. As agreed they went on foot from there, heading down a small incline away from the ravine and towards the lower plains where the watering hole lay, the one Quatre had shown him earlier. The only thing to light their path was the moon and stars above, so they were careful to watch each and every step downward.

With the gun at his back and knife within easy reach Trowa felt slightly more prepared than he had when they'd gone recklessly chasing after the poachers before, but still he was uncertain of what to expect. Even Duo seemed slightly tense next to him. They hadn't spoken a word since the ravine, hoping to stay as stealthy as possible, but Trowa was now realizing that they hadn't exactly talked through their plan of action before arriving.

They could see the shadowy umbrella-like acacia trees that surrounded the watering hole in scattered groups, but no animals could be found anywhere. The men took a few more tentative steps and suddenly there were voices.

Duo managed to pull Trowa down just in time for a barrage of bullets to scream through the dark air in the space where his head and chest had been moments before. On the ground their eyes met, both trying to portray a level of calm that neither knew could be completely truthful.

There was another blast of fire in their general direction and then they were rolling and crawling through the grass and dirt to avoid being detected and slaughtered. It seemed that he and Duo had walked right into the middle of the ambush they'd hoped to spy on, neither knowing which side of it their allies were hiding, if they had any allies at all. One wrong move and they would be blown away.

* * *

_*Karibu_  - Swahili for 'welcome' or 'come in'


	6. SMG's & Stress Relief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Duo followed immediately behind, but Trowa stood back for a few heartbeats, contemplating the possibilities of what was exactly happening. They were not supposed to be there, wasn't that right? They'd been tampering with the ambush, they'd caused excess bloodshed, hadn't they?_

Duo's fingers were clenched around Trowa's wrist when the gun fire finally stopped. The peril had probably only lasted a few short seconds, but the intensity of the situation had made it feel like hours.

At first both men were still, barely daring to breath as they were unsure as to what was happening now that their bodies weren't being shot at. It was improbable that the people trying to kill them could make out their well hidden figures as they lay flat in the tall grass, the darkness of nighttime aiding in their concealment, but they stayed impossibly silent and stiff, listening for sounds of incoming feet or whispered voices.

Beside Trowa, Duo let out a shallow breath and their eyes met through the dim moonlight, but before either man could think of their next move the barking of gunfire caused them both to involuntarily flinch.

It only took them a second to realize, however, that these new shots were not coming in their direction, but rather sounding from their right several yards away. Shouting started up then and there came the loud echo of bullets burying themselves in tree trunks.

Peaking upwards Trowa could just make out the shadowy figures of what he presumed to be the Rangers shooting away from their obscured bodies and into a thick grove of acacia trees. Duo caught his gaze then as they both leaned on forearms to get a better view of the latest action and the man's mouth turned upwards into a grin. They'd accidentally managed to provide a distraction for the NCAA, giving away the poacher's apparent hiding spot.

"I guess it's a good thing those guys had itchy trigger fingers," Duo muttered in Trowa's ear. They'd both grabbed their guns by now, clutching them in preparation for the possibility of another onslaught.

"The Rangers better be grateful," Trowa whispered back, rubbing at a sore spot on his ribs where he'd landed hard against a rock half-hidden in the dirt beneath them.

Duo's smirk shone through the bluish light, his eyes hidden almost completely beneath the shadows of his tangled bangs. "C'mon. Let's go give 'em another leg up, eh?"

Trowa meant to shake his head, his brows curving downward sharply at the idea of moving in any closer to the single-shot spitting of rifles answered by rapid fire of SMG's, but Duo was already moving away from him, creeping towards the trees through the grass. Not wanting the man to go without someone at his back, Trowa cursed the reckless idea silently in his mind before moving to follow Duo as they created a wide arch around the ambush currently taking place.

They'd nearly made it to the poacher's hiding spot, the outline of men clear and obvious now, when he and Duo were forced to duck back into the brush as a man no shorter than Trowa's own tall frame came slinking towards them.

"Distract him," Duo hissed in Trowa's ear and before he could argue Duo was once again melting out of his grasp.

Growling inwardly at the braided man- some sort of damn adrenaline junky he was surmising now- Trowa laid low until the poacher was only a few feet away. He held his breath as his prey drew nearer and nearer until-

Trowa darted out just behind the man, causing his opponent to whip around, his eyes startled, his gun drawn and shooting wildly at the ghost-like figure that he could no longer see.

Trowa had crashed back into the tall grass, the bullets narrowly missing his body, and just as he saw the chamber of a gun coming into line with his head the sound of a strangled cry averted his attention to the sharp knife cutting across the man's throat. The clean cut sent blood immediately flooding from the wound, the poacher gurgling for a moment, before falling to the ground with a thud.

Behind him Duo was wiping his knife off on the dead man's shirt, moving to check the pistol only to find that there were no more bullets left. As he threw the gun away his eyes met Trowa's own, but instead of seeing fear or terror in the indigo depths all he could find was a hollow shadow of intoxication fueled by adrenaline.

He swallowed hard but had no time to react much more as the sound of running boots heading in their direction caused Trowa's body to jump back into action mode. Two more poachers had left the acacia trees and were heading in their direction, taking aim at the men now readily visible.

They'd all four managed to get off a couple of shots, but then the poachers were going down as bullets ripped into them from the side as Rangers took out the oncoming men.

Duo puffed out a rough sigh next to him. He turned with a sidelong glance as they both kneeled low in the grass. "You okay?"

Trowa wiped at his forehead, brushing bangs aside. "Fine."

And then just as suddenly as it had started the gunfire sounding around them came to an abrupt stop only to replaced a few seconds later with the sound of car engines revving to life in the distance.

"Come on!" Duo was already sprinting ahead in the direction that the Ranger's shots had been coming from.

They swept another wide arch, watching as headlights bounced around the night, a few more rifles flashing, and then the cars were pulling out and away as fast as they could over the uneven terrain. By the time the poachers had gone Trowa and Duo had stumbled upon the Ranger's makeshift bunker consisting of camouflaged sandbags and a few jeeps that now sported several bullet wounds in their metal sides, their tires barely protected by the strategically placed bags. It was obvious that the ambush had been fairly well planned out.

"Maxwell!" Someone shouted Duo's name, but the voice was more of a growl than anything. Trowa recognized it and was proven correct as the figure of Ranger Yuy came stalking towards them from out of the shadows. His face did not harbor anything other than a steely glare, his blue eyes piercing.

As he made his way towards them the Ranger's own jeeps rumbled, their headlights creating a bright glow by which to see. Duo took a step forward, not actually shielding Trowa, but clearly taking the brunt of the responsibility for their actions through his weighted stance.

He'd already hidden away his pistol and recently bloodied knife and Trowa hurried to do the same, even though Heero's harsh gaze had not deviated from the braided man to his forward right.

"Why aren't you pursuing?" Duo asked, not bothering with explanation or allowing the other man the right to speak first.

Heero did not seem surprised by the pointed question. "Pursuit is too risky at night and one of my men is injured," he supplied, his voice like metal on metal.

Duo seemed to acknowledge the explanation with a grave nod of his head. There was a silence between the two men then and Trowa prepared himself for the imminent tongue lashing they were about to receive.

"You're who they were shooting at?" Heero said, each word slow and deliberate as his vision flicked between the two men.

There was another nod and Trowa hastened to think of the last time he'd seen Duo stay so quiet. He saw the Ranger's jaw twitch with tension as his teeth ground together, but then he was sighing. "Your actions were inefficient and reckless," he began, staring Duo in the eye as if preparing to scold a small child.

"How many dead?" Heero asked then.

"Three," Duo answered quickly.

Heero nodded, seemingly satisfied with the number. "Weapons?"

"Two subs, one Glock."

Trowa watched in fascination at the odd conversation taking place in front of him, his own presence nearly forgotten amidst the clinical breakdown of what the ambush had actually turned into.

Heero took a few steps forward until he was standing in between Trowa and Duo. He waved a square hand. "Come with me."

Duo followed immediately behind, but Trowa stood back for a few heartbeats, contemplating the possibilities of what was exactly happening. They were not supposed to be there, wasn't that right? They'd been tampering with the ambush, they'd caused excess bloodshed, hadn't they?

The roller coaster that had been his investigation was once again slowly coming to the peak of a hill, all he needed was a few more answers to send the cars flying downward again.

He was several steps behind Duo, watching the man's braid twitch back and forth in the dim light of the stars above. Heero had flicked on a lantern, its beam sweeping back and forth as they made their way through the grass back to where they'd left the three bodies of the expired poachers.

Their footsteps passed silently by the man now laying in a growing pool of his own blood, towards the two poachers that had carried submachine guns. Duo bent down without waiting for any word from Heero and picked up one of the weapons, studying it with keen eyes.

"Why would these poachers bother with war-grade weaponry?" Trowa found himself saying before he could pull the words back into his mouth. It had been a question his subconscious had been toying with, but not one he'd meant to voice in front of a Ranger, least of all Ranger Yuy.

Duo was still busy looking over the gun in his hands, something in his vision appreciative and that made Trowa's stomach tighten just a bit. He could feel Heero's eyes on him, but chose neutrally to ignore the new scrutiny.

He decided instead to move closer to Duo, pointing towards the underside of the barrel at roughed metal. "The serial numbers have been scratched off. Convenient for smugglers."

This time Duo did register Trowa's outward thoughts, turning the weapon in his hands to stare at the rough spot where the serial number would have been. His brows furrowed in confusion and he looked up towards his roommate through thick lashes. For a moment Trowa thought that the expression was caused by annoyance at having not noticed the oddity himself, but he was beginning to understand the way Duo's mind worked and he had a feeling that the perplexity had to do with something else entirely.

Heero managed to grab the gun out of Duo's grasp as the current exchange distracted the man. "That's very-  _observant_ ," he said, taking a look at the barrel for himself.

Trowa knew he probably shouldn't have said anything at all, should have just held back, waited in the shadows until Duo had come across the marks- as he knew he would have eventually- and let Ranger Yuy do his job. But the dull ache for answers within his investigative mind was screaming at him to exhaust all recourses, even if that meant stamping some prodding questions into Heero and Duo's minds. Any way to get the ball rolling.

"Animal smuggling with a side of illegal gun-running?" Duo interjected with a lopsided smile. He was trying half-heartedly to pull Heero's stony attention away from Trowa now. "That sounds like a match made in heaven, huh Yuy?"

The Ranger did not answer, but the idea seemed efficient enough to have quelled his impending suspicion of Trowa's sudden knowledge on things criminal in nature.

"I see that kinda stuff on television and in the movies all the time," Duo added for good measure. But Heero was not listening anymore, his own intensity focussed on digging through the dead poacher's clothing and retrieving any other weapons left behind.

After ten minutes they began to make their way collectively back towards the jeeps, Ranger Yuy having begrudgingly offered them a ride to where they'd left their bikes, as his team took care of the casualties. Duo had squeezed a scarlet spattered hand onto Trowa's shoulder once, a little harder than necessary, as they'd walked along in total silence. They did not speak the entire trip back to the Compound.

* * *

The entire thing had been-  _strange_. That was the best word he could attribute to the situation. Trowa had put his cover at risk once again, Duo had murdered a man in near cold blood- with a hunting knife no less- and Heero had seemed somewhat unsurprised by the killing or their arrival during the ambush. Yes, it was all very  _strange_.

"Were any jaguars hurt?" Sally Po was asking, her face a mask of calm. Trowa had expected her to be furious, or at least more concerned than she seemed to be acting. Of course it was practically the middle of the night by now, their arrival having been prefaced only a few moments ago by radio.

Heero shook his head. "No, we were careful to drive them from the area early on."

Sally glanced towards the men standing at the Ranger's side. "And the two of you?"

Duo had opened his mouth to explain, Trowa already forming a rebuttal against any arguments that might flare up, but to both of their surprise Heero was the first to speak.

"I'd asked them to assist us earlier," he said, giving the woman an almost sincere look of apology even as he lied straight through his teeth.

Trowa found himself glaring. Why was he defending them? The two of them had probably ended up causing more problems for the NCAA than anything else. As if sensing the uncertainty, Heero's eyes slanted to catch his own, something in their dark depths warning him. He understood; this would be a one time deal- an equivalence to their providing the small distraction that had led to discovering the poacher's location perhaps.

There was a soft sigh, but Sally seemed satisfied with the man's excuse. She turned towards Trowa and Duo, her expression tired. "I need to talk with Ranger Yuy alone. Get some rest, I'd like you both to accompany Wufei and I on a trip into Arusha tomorrow morning."

Neither man bothered with a verbal answer, only nodded as the woman turned back towards Heero, probably in preparation to hound him with more questions in regards to the poachers that seemed to weigh heavily on everyone's minds here at the Compound.

Duo and Trowa walked back to the dorms at a leisurely pace, their footsteps heavy with fatigue from their latest brush with death. Trowa wondered vaguely if Wufei would have another smart crack in regards to Duo's 'near death experience count' come tomorrow morning.

When they'd made it back to their room, Trowa's mind had once again become a pool of thoughts swimming frantically in search of release. Every day it seemed his investigation moved an inch forward only to be muddied once again by something unforeseen.

Without even thinking, he grabbed his towel from the double hook on their door and headed straight towards the showers. He needed the water and steam to wash away the day's confusion and the soreness his muscles were feeling from the evening's intensity.

Once the water-heater had time to kick in, he closed his eyes under the warm spray, letting the liquid run down his body in rivulets, dirt and some unidentified smears of blood washing away down the drain at his feet. His long bangs clung to his face as he braced hands in front of him against the tiled wall of the single shower stall, his shoulders and neck melting beneath the pelting heat.

Trowa had not heard the communal door opening, nor the footsteps as they padded along barefoot towards the showers, but after a moment he registered the rough hand against his lower back and without hesitation he was grabbing Duo and shoving him against the wall to press his mouth forward in a bruising kiss.

Hours before they had laid in bed one atop the other, kissing and sucking and biting, but they had been fully clothed, not vulnerable, not in the damn communal showers. Now they were both naked and wet- and  _very_   _naked_. Somewhere along the line they had missed a step.

But in this moment Trowa didn't care, the only thing his mind could register was the way Duo's braid felt as it became heavy with water, the way his muscles trembled with every touch, the way they shivered as their erections caught against one another's.

Duo's hands roved his back as their teeth clashed in a particularly rough kiss. The fingers played along sharp lines, against a few raised scars, and down to the dip of his lower back, down even further until they grasped at the firm muscle they found there.

The water was rapidly growing cooler, but neither man seemed to care as the tension of the day seemed to be washed away with each kiss, each lick, each thrust. Duo moaned against Trowa's neck as strong fingers found his partner's hardness, gripping the length to illicit the arousing sound a second time.

He'd been pumping for less than a minute before Duo pulled to the side and angled himself in order to fist the mirrored erection that had been rubbing against his thigh. Trowa bit against his lower lip to stifle a groan at the sudden contact.

Duo's forehead came to rest against Trowa's shoulder, both of their breathing having become more and more erratic as the dual ministrations continued. A thumb swept over the head of Trowa's cock releasing a shiver that he soon returned by mimicking the motion with his own deft fingers.

"Shit, Tro," came a rough voice, slightly out of breath. "This is- fuckin' hot."

While Trowa agreed with the sentiment he could not focus enough to come up with an adequate response. Instead he placed his free hand under Duo's chin to raise the man's lips to his own. Their tongues twitched against each other and Duo began moaning into the kiss, his hips thrusting forward in several irregular beats and then Trowa felt the other man's pleasure, warm and wet, against the drying skin of his hand.

Duo's body slumped into him again, but his rhythm had only been momentarily interrupted. Trowa could feel the tension within his stomach building, the impending need for release. He pictured Duo above him that evening in the garage, his eyes full of innocent shame. His fingers found themselves wrapping around the end of the wet braid, his hips hitching forward. The image changed, morphing into the memory of Duo's glowing eyes, the bloodied knife-

Trowa came with a harsh gasp, his eyes flashing open at the intensity. A white-hot shiver ran through his body and then he too was leaning into the body before him, a hand clutching at the now cold shower tiles.

After a few steadying breaths Trowa pulled back. He ran his body beneath the water, now merely lukewarm, to rid himself of any remnants of their activities. A moment later Duo followed suit.

"We'll sleep damn good tonight, eh?" Duo said, a smirk sliding into place, the words perhaps some kind of consolation for their impulsive actions. He exited the stall then in search of his towel, leaving Trowa to turn off the water and wonder about what he'd just done.

He was relatively certain now, even after encountering poisonous snakes and SMG toting poachers, that he was from this moment on  _officially_  in deep, deep trouble.


	7. Geronimo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _He'd not seen or sensed the attack coming, but suddenly his wrists were pinned effectively on either side of his head, a heavy body coming to rest just above his hips. With the new and unexpected presence combined with the exertion his body was still trying to overcome, Trowa realized that he was nearly one hundred percent immobilized- not something he was used to nor a position an agent such as himself should ever have found himself in._

Duo had been right, he did sleep damn good. So well, in fact, that he found it almost difficult to peel open his eyes at the sensation of a hand shaking him awake.

"Tro-wa," Duo was saying, elongating the syllables in a mock voice of sweetness. When Trowa's eyes finally opened he found the other man's face all too close to his own.

And then reality crashed back around him.

His roommate seemed to find his sleepy face amusing as he let out a chuckle before stepping back and pulling at the shirt that hung around his arms up over his head and down his body.

That's right, they were traveling to Arusha today. God only knew why Sally had requested Duo's help, let alone Trowa's, after all the trouble they'd seemed to be getting into ever since his arrival in Tanzania.

"What's in Arusha?" Trowa wondered a few moments later, fully dressed and lacing up his boots.

Duo was standing in the now open doorway, leaning against the frame. He scratched at the back of his head. "Lots'a things," he replied. "But I reckon we're picking up new rescues seeing as how Sally and I just loaded up with supplies- and  _you_ \- only four days ago."

He'd only been there four days. That didn't seem possible what with everything that had already happened to him. Four days and he'd already practically had shower sex with his bunkmate. Dammit, how had he let everything fall apart so quickly?

Trowa shook his head, trying to rid his mind of thoughts unnecessary to the day's trip or his investigation. What's done is done and besides, the bit of R&R the night previous had managed to relieve some of the tension he'd noticed building since his arrival. He'd just have to forget about feeling remorseful, it sure seemed like Duo couldn't care less.

The braided man grinned as his taller frame passed by. "You'll get to ride in the back of the truck with me this time. Wufei won't be so obliging towards your verticality."

Trowa couldn't stop his eyes from rolling at the man's warped sense of speaking, but the muscles in his legs were already cringing at the thought of the two hour drive ahead. He had half a mind to swipe at the back of Duo's head for finding his unfortunate height so humorous.

Once outside they saw that Wufei had already pulled the truck from the garage and was leaning against its bed near the Compound's front gate. He greeted the two men more genially than usual and did, in fact, have something to say in regards to Duo's running count of perilous situations, much to Trowa's internal amusement.

"Hey, I'm flattered you think so highly of me, 'Fei. Always so worried about my liveliness," Duo replied, hand clutching against his heart.

The Chinese man grimaced. "You're not a cat, Maxwell. One of these days it's going to catch up with you."

The comment was answered with a smirk. "You're right. I'm better than a cat. They've only got  _nine_  lives- I've got an infinite supply."

At that point Wufei had not formally seceded from the argument, but their verbal sparring was cut short as Sally came jogging towards them, a worn leather bag tossed over one shoulder.

"Are we ready?" she asked, her eyes scanning the three men who nodded back at her in return.

"Good." Sally turned to Wufei. "The keys?"

Begrudgingly,  _very_  begrudgingly, the man handed over the truck's keys with a slight frown that Sally only laughed at as she circled over to the driver's side. Duo wrenched open the back door then and climbed in, scooting across the bench seat to make room for Trowa. Duo had been right earlier, Wufei hadn't even bothered an apologetic glance at the other man's long legs, but in the end he figured he wouldn't mind riding next to his roommate rather than Sally anyways.

After some general conversation at the start of the trip it seemed that Duo had also been correct in their assumption of their purpose in Arusha. Wufei explained to him that many zoos and parks from around the world send their sick animals to the Po Animal & Nature Compound because either they lacked the proper facilities or else they sought after Sally's renowned expertise. They were heading towards a warehouse owned by 'Oz Corp,' an import/export company that the Compound had partnered with for the last few years.

Trowa discovered that a two hour ride could actually go by quickly while listening to his traveling companions swap stories for his own enjoyment, Wufei occasionally sending a scathing comment backwards only to have Duo volley something even more sarcastic right back, their relationship like a belligerent boomerang.

It seemed that the hard man he'd met initially was not so stone-faced as Trowa caught several cracked smiles from Wufei, even at some of Duo's crudest of jokes. All in all, the ride had actually managed to be quite entertaining, so much so that he hadn't even had time to dwell on the immense vexation that his assignment was proving to become.

When the group arrived at their destination, a large weatherbeaten warehouse at the very end of a row of similar buildings, there was a broad-shouldered man waiting for them outside, a cigarette hanging from his lips and a look of irritation on his tanned face.

"That's Trant," Duo explained in his ear, having noticed where Trowa's vision had been drawn. "He manages the Oz Corp warehouses."

The way Duo spoke, his voice low and uncharacteristically monotone, led Trowa to believe that the man was not necessarily considered a friend of his.

Sally parked the truck and by the frown on her lips Trowa could tell that she already knew something was wrong. When they exited the vehicle Trant pushed off the wall and walked to meet them halfway.

"Shipment's delayed," he explained, puffing at his cigarette.

Sally's frown only deepened. She crossed her arms and leaned weight onto her right leg. "How much of a delay?"

Trant shrugged like he couldn't be bothered with such questions. "A couple of hours. I can't help what the planes do and by the time I'd called over to the Compound you'd already left for Arusha."

Trowa watched Sally's shoulders slump and Wufei's own arms tense in annoyance at the man's attitude. "I suppose it can't be helped," she sighed, turning around to face the other men.

Duo opened his mouth to speak, probably in hopes of remedying the situation, but Sally was already smiling. "You've never visited Arusha, Trowa," the woman said, waving an arm towards their surroundings. "You and Duo go explore. Wufei and I will stay here and we can meet back when the shipment gets in."

Trowa, still wondering why their presence had been requested in the first place, couldn't help but falter at the woman's offer. But beside him Duo was already agreeing, a new excitement filtering into his voice at the thought of a few hours in the city to themselves.

It was no more than ten minutes and several blocks later that he and Duo were strolling down the streets of Arusha's lively market-town, the Oz Corp warehouse resting at the edge of a district called Tengeru. They passed by lines of two story brick buildings with colorfully painted doors carved with intricate detail and narrow balconies constructed of rod iron.

As they turned down a wider street Trowa's eyes darted over the rows and rows of booths and tables covered by wooden or canvas roofs. In bins lay a spectrum of fruits and vegetables, their bright reds, greens, and yellows illuminated by the morning sunshine. Woven baskets hung from the rafters above tables filled with tapestries and displays of beaded jewelry that he recognized from his visit to the manyatta.

They passed by an old woman sitting beneath an umbrella covered sewing table, her age-worn hands busy at work on a multicolored shúkà. Several steps further and a group of school-age children ran past them, dodging between the two men, their smiles wide and wild. They'd come across an inordinately large pile of green banana clusters when Duo stopped abruptly, Trowa nearly running into the back of him.

The braided man caught his companion's arm with his fingers. "I don't mean to sound paranoid- but after everything lately- Tro, I think we're being followed."

At the odd words Trowa's brain automatically switched modes. His eyes scanned the area, but the narrow walkways and booth-filled streets were so heavily packed with people that it would have been hard for even his trained eyes to spot something- or  _someone_ \- out of the ordinary here.

But more than just understanding the warning in his voice, Trowa trusted Duo's judgement. He turned without a word and weaved his way through a throng of oncoming traffic, Duo following close at his heels, the plan of action humming between them, unspoken.

Trowa dodged left between two wooden tables boasting wooden carvings of lions and wildebeest accompanied by thick piles of wool and large spools of heavy twine. They bared right, trailing behind a young woman searing sinews of thin beef against scorching cast-iron. Duo jogged around the next sharp turn to keep up.

The two had made it to an alleyway between tall cement buildings, heading up the narrow street out of the market and towards the more residential area they'd first come upon earlier. Trowa felt certain that their quick and uncertain maneuvers would have shaken anyone off their tail, at least for the time being. Now he could turn to Duo and inquire for a more thorough debriefing of what he had seen.

But then there was a hand on his wrist pulling him backwards and after only a heartbeat of realization did Trowa decide that it was not Duo's touch that he felt. Yet the hesitation had cost him and before he could move, the singular grip had been replaced with a strong arm binding itself over his chest to pin arms to his sides and a rough hand clamping against his mouth to stifle the yell that had manifested in his throat.

Trowa's instincts told him to reach for his weapon, but in light of the trip's details he'd not stowed anything more than a knife in an ankle sheath hidden by his utility slacks. Careless and naive, but then again he'd not had any indication that he might be finding himself in such a perilous situation and carrying a concealed Glock around the foreign city was probably not the wisest. Through his investigation so far, this was nothing he could have predicted, agent or not.

He tried to sink his booted foot backwards in hopes of catching against his attacker's shin, but he was unsuccessful, his body being dragged into a nearby recess, off-balanced. Trowa stumbled, his chest feeling crushed by the steel appendage squeezing against his ribcage. But it was not until he felt himself spun around within the claustrophobic shadows to meet a mirrored image and those indigo eyes that he began to panic.

"You will cooperate, yes?" came an icy voice in his ear. All Trowa could comprehend was the hard look in Duo's eyes across from him; they were so confined in the space that they were almost touching, but their dual captors kept them those last few inches apart.

The barrel of a gun jabbed against Trowa's ribs and he nodded once in response to the earlier question, not daring to speak. He had no choice, whoever these men were, if they knew of his true identity or not, he could not let anything happen to Duo.

Seemingly satisfied, they were pushed and prodded down the alley, arms held at an awkward angle by meaty hands, and then pulled down an even narrower path that forced them to walk single file. Behind Duo's captor he could see the metal of a pistol in the braided man's back much like the one still pushing its way between ribs. Thus far the men had not revealed any identity or shown Trowa any reason they might suspect him as an agent and he hoped that his assumptions were true in that case because then they might at least have bluffing on their side.

The alleyway ended in a small dirt courtyard that suddenly became filled with the sound of a coughing engine as a large military style truck roared to life. Trowa watched as the man before him pushed at the center of Duo's back releasing him to stumble forward towards the awaiting vehicle. A few seconds later he received the same treatment, though he knew that the guns were undoubtably still trained on their heads.

Another man hopped down from the driver's side door of the truck, a cigarette clenched between teeth, many of them gold and silver in color, and walked to the back in order to throw open the canvas to reveal a bed harboring several innocuous looking crates.

The man pulled out his own weapon from a worn looking shoulder holster and then hopped up on the tailgate to turn and look down at the two new arrivals. "Come," he growled, waving his gun in the air towards them and then in a motion towards the bench seats lining the truck's bed.

Trowa wanted nothing more than to take this opportunity to disarm the man behind him, the one holding his gun all wrong, the one probably influenced by B-grade American gangster films, but he couldn't be sure that Duo would be able to handle his own goon. And besides all that, the man in the truck now had his pistol raised lazily at the braided man's head.  _Not the most opportune time for dramatics_ , Trowa thought rather bitterly.

So instead he moved forward, slowly to show the man- who he'd perceived as their 'leader'- that he was going to cooperate as had been previously requested of him. The leader managed a smile and moved into the truck to make room for his new guests. Trowa had even allowed his hands to come up at shoulder height in a show of surrender, but he'd not accounted for the captor that had suddenly wrapped his hand in Duo's braid next to him, whispering something in his ear around a disgusting smirk.

Before Trowa could even think about sweeping the feet out from behind him, grabbing the dropped pistol and sending a quick bullet into the other man's gut, Duo's new friend already had blood bubbling from his nose as his captive's head had made violent contact with the vulnerable cartilage. It was an opening if Trowa had ever seen one, a little unprepared and sloppy, but an opening nonetheless.

In one swift motion Trowa ducked and swung his leg out, catching the large man behind him by surprise, his hand grabbing the gunman's wrist, pulling the weapon free from fumbling fingers. By the time he'd turned two seconds later, Duo was dodging an impulsively slow right hook, his own fist hitting his opponent square in the solar plexus, sending the man into a wrack of gasping breaths.

He was about to reach for the man's discarded gun when the sound of a pistol cocking sent their muscles into deep freeze.

"You care for his life?" the man with the mismatched teeth spoke in a heavy accent that Trowa could not quite recognize. His gun was set mere inches from his temple, steady and ready to fire at the most invisible of movements.

Duo's eyes had grown wide, his hands shaking slightly- from adrenaline or fear Trowa wasn't sure. Duo straightened painfully slow to stare up at the man standing once again on the truck's tailgate, his features hard and jaw tight.

But then the man's gun was flicking from Trowa to Duo in a sharp motion. "Or is it his life that is more important?"

Trowa felt his breath catch in his throat as the gun's trajectory found its way back to Duo. He'd have much preferred the thing pointed at his own head. But it wasn't hard to figure out what the man's angle was here; how long had these people been watching them? Did he really know the extent of their relationship or was it just a very accurate assumption?

Either way Trowa didn't care to find out the hard way. His voice was soft when he next spoke. "We will cooperate."

The man smiled and it made Trowa feel nauseous. "Good. Now-  _in_."

The gun did not waver from Duo's head as Trowa cautiously hitched his body inside of the waiting vehicle. The men they'd attacked a moment ago, perhaps pride officially ruined, made their way quickly and quietly around to the truck's cab.

Once Trowa was seated, hands laid atop the bench at his sides, it was Duo's turn. He had to use all of the willpower left in his body not to growl as the gunman grabbed ahold of Duo's bicep, practically hauling him in with little patience. The only silver-lining of the situation was that Duo had been made to sit next to Trowa, their hands mere centimeters from one another, while their captor took the seat across from them.

After a moment of silence the truck lurched forward, the canvas flaps falling into place, effectively sealing their captivity from the outside world. The man before them sat forward, resting his arms against knees, the gun still trained on Duo, but less of an immediate threat now.

"Who are you?" Trowa ventured after a few minutes of rough travel. He sorely wished he could see anything more than the meager scenery he could make out from the small window that looked out over the truck's cab.

The man leaned back, apparently relaxing now that the trip was underway. Trowa immediately wanted to laugh at what would be his captor's second mistake. The man's first mistake had taken place the minute they'd been captured. It was fairly clear now that they did not know of his identity and background; they'd underestimated him, and he understood now, they'd underestimated Duo as well.

Dark eyes studied Duo and Trowa before coming up with a response. "Who I am is not important. The only thing that matters is your meddling in my employer's business."

"Meddling?" Duo scoffed out, his teeth on edge. Trowa attempted to catch the man's eyes in hopes of calming him, but Duo continued to glare forward.

The gold-toothed man had not noticed Trowa's concern and said, "You are a liability that must be deleted."

Trowa blinked, the man had been staring straight at him as the words tumbled out in the space between them. Perhaps he had been wrong, maybe his identity had been somehow revealed.

But at this current juncture, none of those small details really made a difference. Their lives were in the hands of three men, perhaps the very poachers he was there to investigate, or else someone with involvement here that he had not had the opportunity to figure out just yet. Either way, he and Duo needed to act quickly.

He and Duo had not shared much other than a dorm room, some duties at the Compound, a few stolen kisses, and their still unmentioned evening of sexual encounters in the showers. If he'd been working with another undercover agent, with a partner, perhaps the two might have sparred together, or at least have gotten the same amount of training from the CBP, but he and Duo had never had encounters such as that. No, at this point he was going to have to trust that the braided man would be able to keep up, or at least was a fast learner.

Slowly Trowa allowed two fingers to swipe at his perspiring temple, the movement innocuous and meaningless to their captor, but enough to grab hold of Duo's attention; a signal of sorts.

Trowa leaned in then, as if in hopes of speaking more thoroughly with the gunman before him, and he noticed as Duo's body leaned the opposite direction, creating more distance between them without being too obvious.

The truck jolted as the left-side tires dipped down against the uneven road, throwing their captor off-balance for a fleeting second his mind not on the gun, but on catching his body from falling forward. Trowa didn't need anymore of a distraction to make his move.

Trowa grabbed the man's gun-arm to slam his wrist against the side of a wooden crate while Duo's body flew in, a fist making powerful contact with the man's jaw. They watched as dark eyes rolled backwards, his body slumping unceremoniously to the bed's floor with a soft thud.

"Nice hook," Trowa muttered, reaching for the gun. He couldn't stop his lips from quirking upwards in appreciation for the braided man's quick and practiced moves.

Duo was already at the truck's back door, holding back a flap, his braid blowing against his neck from the wind. "Shit, we make a good team," he shouted over his shoulder just before stepping off the tailgate and into thin air.

Trowa was following his move seconds later, realizing just what an adrenaline junky the other man must be in not having hesitated even a heartbeat with the 'jumping off a moving vehicle' aspect of this venture. He leapt, crouching and rolling into the movement to lessen any damage from the fall.

Seconds later his muscles sent shockwaves of ache from the initial impact, but nothing was broken and they'd not been shot at yet, so things were near perfect in his book. Trowa looked up to see Duo a few yards away, getting to his feet while inspecting a harsh looking scrape lining his forearm.

"Alright?" Trowa hissed out, running towards the other man.

But Duo was already waving him off. "Just a scratch. Let's go."

Trowa didn't have time to evaluate if any other part of Duo's body had been injured as the braided man had already taken off into the thick trees that lined the road's edge. Just as they'd both made it into the cover of jungle they could hear the truck screeching to a halt and the echoes of angry shouting.

"Better get moving," Trowa said, trying desperately to regain some form of bearing for their current location.

Duo clutched at his arm, pulling, his eyes honing in on the thick undergrowth. "This way."

The two pawed their way through twisting vines, lush trees, and thick roots. Trowa had to duck under a particularly protruding branch while Duo's head barely missed the knotted wood. They moved swiftly and efficiently, even with the sounds of searching footsteps and foreign words drawing closer and closer to their backs.

After several arduous minutes of jungle trek, Trowa was about to question Duo's navigational knowledge of the landscape, but then the sound of crashing water began to filter into his ears. A second later Duo was pushing past a large, green frond to reveal and jagged cliff's edge mere inches from where their boots had stopped. After Trowa's eyes had adjusted to the knew and precarious surroundings his mind abruptly caught up to Duo's own scheming thoughts.

"You can't be serious," Trowa muttered, his brows quirking as he took in the roaring waterfall that led straight downward towards a wide, rushing river. If he'd been prone to vertigo, this new site would most definitely set off an attack of dizzy nausea.

He watched Duo feign contemplation before the other man's mouth tipped upwards at the corners. "You bet your ass, Tro."

Even if Trowa had wanted to pursue the argument more, any of his next words were drowned out by the sound of popping gunfire not more than a few yards behind them. Duo gave a holler, leaping out over the edge of the cliff like a deranged bird. Trowa silently cursed the braid now sailing above the other man's head and, at the sensation of a bullet whistling past his ear, pushed his right foot against the edge of the cliff and pushed off into the air.

His stomach twisted and dropped the entire way down, air struggling to stay in his lungs, before his body plummeted into the frothy water below the falls.

Trowa barely had time to realize that he was, in fact, still very much alive before more bullets were screaming past him, cutting through the water above, but thankfully missing his body hidden beneath the white foam above his head.

Duo was there now, motioning some sort of order or idea, but all Trowa could focus on was the way his chestnut bangs seemed to hover out over the man's indigo eyes, dancing in the rushing water in an oddly arousing way.

A second later his own eyes began to burn as the river water attacked his sensitive corneas, bringing Trowa fully back to reality like a sharp smack across the face. More gunshots could be heard overhead, muffled by the sensation of water filling his ears. He and Duo allowed their bodies to be pulled by the strong current, the other man's hand gripping firmly to his forearm as to not get separated. By the time their lungs burned with the need for oxygen the two were far enough away from their assailants that they could finally bob to the surface.

Trowa gasped as his lips met the fresh air. Duo was coughing furiously, one hand still clutching at Trowa's arm while the other anchored them to a small, slick boulder.

As their panting turned back into more regulated breathing Trowa managed to extricate his appendage from Duo's somewhat possessive grip. "Can you make it to shore?" he asked, gesturing towards the river bank a few yards away.

Duo nodded, his skin beginning to flush with exertion. But despite his weakened appearance, he pushed off the rock with great power, giving him a head start to Trowa. And though their strokes were powerful, the water still managed to carry them a few extra feet down river before they reached the shore.

Trowa kneeled on his hands and knees against the muddy ground, sucking in air as rivulets of water ran off of his face and bangs, pooling delicately beneath him in the soft earth. He'd not seen or sensed the attack coming, but suddenly his wrists were pinned effectively on either side of his head, a heavy body coming to rest just above his hips. With the new and unexpected presence combined with the exertion his body was still trying to overcome, Trowa realized that he was nearly one hundred percent immobilized- not something he was used to nor a position an agent such as himself should ever have found himself in.

Trowa stared up into the piercing indigo above him, his mouth hanging open just slightly in disbelief. "Duo-"

"No," Duo growled out, his face totally encased in some sort of emotion Trowa had not yet seen from the man. "Shut up- just shut up and listen."

Trowa unceremoniously shut his mouth, teeth snapping together obediently. Duo huffed above him, not loosening his grip, and tried to catch his breath before speaking again. "Just who the fuck are you man? Now don't get me wrong- I've been known to get into trouble, some real deep shit- but this? I ain't never found myself damn well  _kidnapped_  in broad daylight by dudes spouting off shit about 'meddling in some boss' business.' If this Peacecraft guy was  _just_  a work friend, an acquaintance even, then why the hell would you travel half-way across the fuckin' planet to go lookin' for him?."

Duo sighed roughly. "Now you're gonna sit here and explain to me just what the hell is goin' on because something ain't right here and  _you_  seem to be my new bad luck charm or some shit."

Trowa flexed his arms against Duo's grip, but the smaller man was apparently much stronger than he'd given him credit for. Trowa stared upwards, his lips in an emotionless line. He could spill the beans now and receive Duo's help- for real this time- or he could call Une and explain that he'd been compromised and that she'd need to try some other angle of investigation and then he'd be shipped back home to his drafty studio apartment where he'd have to wear those ill-fitting dress shirts and fill out paperwork in triplicate in his claustrophobic cubicle.

Trowa swallowed once. "May I speak now?"

Duo snorted out a laugh and eased up slightly by pulling some of his body weight off of the other man's wrists without actually letting him go. "Yeah, Tro, you can speak," he bit out.

Sighing, Trowa looked the man straight in the eyes. "You're right Duo. Milliardo Peacecraft is not just a 'work acquaintance.' In fact, his name isn't even Peacecraft, it's Merquise- Zechs Merquise. But I didn't lie about working with the man- though I don't know him personally we do work together. We are both Investigative Agents for U.S. Customs & Border Protection."

Trowa watched carefully the impact his words had on the man still pinning him to the dirt covered ground. A few droplets of water splashed from Duo's bangs and down onto his forehead, though his gaze never wavered.

"An Investigative Agent?" The foreign words tumbled out of Duo's mouth in a disbelieving whisper. "Well I hadn't exactly expected that sort of bomb."

Duo pulled back now, releasing Trowa from his pinned position, and sat back on his haunches, something akin to sheepishness wrinkling across his features. Trowa sat up and rubbed as some residual dirt at the back of his still damp head.

"I am here undercover to look into Merquise's disappearance and continue with his investigation of the animal smuggling taking place in the NCA," Trowa explained further.

Duo continued to stare in shock. "You're undercover? So your name's not really-"

"My name is Trowa. But Trowa  _Barton_ \- not Bloom. That was my code name."

"Trowa Barton," Duo repeated, his eyes moving inward as if his entire life had been suddenly turned on its axis.

Trowa decided inexplicably that he liked how his full name sounded coming off of Duo's tongue. He wanted him to say it over and over again, but he realized prudently that there was never- and never would be- enough time for such a trivial activity.

"You're not-  _angry_?" Trowa tested the waters one toe at a time.

Duo looked up, his eyes blank as if he'd been in another world just a second before. "Huh? Oh-  _angry_? No, why would I be angry?"

Trowa's brows furrowed and he held up his hand, counting off on his fingers. "I lied to you, my presence brought a deadly snake into your bedroom, I got you kidnapped, we nearly broke our necks jumping off a cliff-"

Duo waved his own hands out in surrender. "Okay, yeah, I get it. But I'm not mad, Tro."

Trowa frowned. "Why not?"

Something that looked like a near blush assaulted Duo's cheeks. "Well, for starters, we aren't dead are we? And we got away from the bad guys. And, well, I've actually been having a lot of fun since you got here- even with the added peril of puff adders and being held at gunpoint."

Trowa wasn't sure he'd ever felt so relieved in his entire life. His skin felt like it had been doused in cool, crystal water- or perhaps that was just the residual sensation from diving into the river a few minutes ago? Either way, Trowa couldn't quite swallow down the smile that pulled at his lips.

"I've- actually enjoyed my time here as well, assignment or not," he admitted ducking his eyes as Duo began to beam in his direction.

He'd never been one to embarrass, truly he wasn't sure he'd ever had the sensation before in his life. But somehow suddenly Trowa felt very vulnerable and he realized that perhaps the feelings he was having towards Duo were more than just sexual like he'd originally thought. This was certainly not something he'd been trained to handle.

Then, just as suddenly as before, Duo was pouncing on him, pushing him back down into the dirt. But this time the powerful presence was accompanied by a set of warm lips pushing roughly against his own. They kissed, several times, Trowa's tongue flicking out to find Duo's bottom lip. He sucked at the slick skin and felt the heat of his arousal begin to grow as the other man moaned into his mouth at the sensation.

But then Duo pulled back, his face entirely flushed now. "If you're here undercover- isn't my knowing going to compromise the mission?"

Trowa had to fight back the haze that had begun to form over his eyes. He blinked and allowed his mind to process what had just been said to him around the images of Duo naked and grinding against him. "Um- technically yes."

Duo's eyes fell slightly, but Trowa pushed his lips forward for another brief kiss. " _But_  only if my supervisors are aware of the breach."

"Oh yeah?" He watched the braided man's eyelids lower slightly.

Trowa smirked. "Yeah. And with your moves back there I'd say you are just about the best partner I could ask for- if you're up for it?" He added a small thrust of his hips for good measure.

Duo's eyes had closed fully now, his own body unable to fight the urge to push back, his hips grinding downward. He managed to peel open one eye, giving Trowa a look of doubt that seemed odd for the usually cocksure man. "Isn't that- I don't know- against protocol or something?"

Trowa gave a grunt of amusement. "Screw protocol." He wrapped a hand against the back of Duo's neck and pulled him down until the other man's body was laying full on top of his own. "This is worth any extra paperwork."

They kissed deeply, mouths sparking as tongues explored. Trowa ran his hands deftly along the dips and edges of Duo's back, all the way down to his firm, khaki covered ass. He tried to focus on the amount of amazing muscle there instead of the inkling feeling of uncertainty at having just divulged his secret profession to a man he barely knew, but who had managed to seduce him in less than a week of undercover work.

There was no going back now, so he squeezed and kissed and teased and forced himself to stop thinking about anything other than Duo Maxwell.


	8. Double-Edged Discoveries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Trowa's eyes narrowed as he continued to flip through the papers only to find more animals that appeared to be 'signed' for by Dr. Po. He was about to unclasp one of the more hidden documents to take in as potential evidence when the sound of heavy footsteps echoed back towards the warehouse's entrance._

Trowa realized fairly quickly that he may have acted rashly. Or maybe incredibly impulsive was more accurate? Perhaps completely and utterly out of his mind was the best way to sum it up?

Duo strode along beside him as they made their way back into the city. His smile and the confident little bounce in his step made Trowa think twice about letting him in on his little secret, but he hadn't been lying when he'd complimented the braided man on his fighting skills earlier. He'd been just as much a match for their kidnappers as Trowa had been and  _he_  was 'classically trained' after all. He'd also watched Duo slit an attacker's throat, dodging bullets, and fighting like he'd been doing that sort of thing his entire life. Maybe it wouldn't be a problem, maybe it would work.

Trowa bit the inside of his lip and plowed his eyes forward along the path that, according to Duo, would slowly lead them back to the Oz Corp warehouse. At least the man knew the landscape better than Trowa did, if nothing else, his assignment would be benefitted by that small amount of knowledge.

After another bout of wrestling with his subconscious Trowa had to remind himself that Duo had already been helping with the investigation. True, he might not have been privy to all the important details, but he'd known of Merquise's disappearance and he did have the connections to allow Trowa a more broad range of investigation. He sighed internally, he'd made his bed and now he'd have to lie in it- preferably with Duo's naked body lying next to him of course.

There was an elbow jutting him in the ribs and Trowa shook his head to clear the jumbled thoughts. He turned to Duo. "What?"

"I said 'what do you think our next course of action should be?' Or is that too complicated for you Mr. Secret Agent Man?" Duo said around a mouthful of laughter.

Trowa blinked. "Oh- well- I'll need to decipher the code on Merquise's palm-top."

The other man nodded at that. "We could give it another look when we get back. Maybe we'll be lucky and Sally'll give us the afternoon off since we travelled all the way out to Arusha."

Trowa found himself having to swallow down the amount of times Duo had used the word 'we' in just those two sentences. "About that Duo," he began, the words seeming to stick to his tongue. "Around Sally and Wufei-"

"Oh I know, I know." Duo placed a hand against Trowa's arm. "I'm not an idiot. Mum's the word around anyone but you, 'kay?"

"'Kay," Trowa responded in mimicry. He'd not really thought Duo to be 'an idiot' about such things, but for his own piece of mind, he had to double check.

As he watched Duo amble along, Trowa couldn't help but wonder how the man had managed to bounce back so quickly. Less than an hour before they'd had their lives threatened by presumed poachers carting them off, in all likelihood, to their doom. It became clear to him that Duo was not your average guy and he filed away some questions for later in the privacy of their dorm room.

Trowa was now reasonably sure that somewhere, somehow his identity and assignment had been leaked not only just to his new 'partner.' They would have to be more careful, less obvious, and perhaps carry more substantial weaponry on their person. The thoughts twisting through his mind had begun to give Trowa a throbbing headache.

Duo leaned into his arm a little as they neared the line-up of warehouses they'd pulled up to earlier. It was simple and innocuous, yet incredibly affectionate and Trowa couldn't fight the small bout of warmth that grew in his gut from the contact. The touch was like a reminder of their previous escapades, of the new trust the two men had formed, something to remember once they had to revert back to simple roommates in front of there other companions.

When they arrived at the Oz Corp warehouse both of them had nearly forgotten their disheveled clothing and still damp hair until they saw the look on Sally Po's face.

"What the hell happened to you two?" she asked, her voice hitching more than usual. Her eyes were wide as she took in their appearances.

Duo just gave a small shrug. "Eh, you know I can't resist a good nature hike," he explained, smirking at the woman. "Came across a nice little waterfall- must have just gotten caught up in the moment."

Trowa wasn't certain, but he was almost positive he saw Duo wink. He felt his ears go hot as Sally's eyes drifted to his frame, but then Wufei and Trant, the warehouse manager, were walking from within the building's interior towards them. He watched Wufei's eyes widen at the sight of them, but he also distinctly noticed Trant's own gaze darken.

Wufei shook his head as he approached. "See, this is why your roommates keep running out on you, Maxwell."

Duo actually stuck his tongue out towards the Chinese man. "Save it, 'Fei. How about the animals? Are we ready to load up?"

At that Wufei glared backwards towards Trant. "You say it will be another hour?"

Trant barely looked at him, throwing his hand up in the air nonchalantly. "Only one more hour, I assure you."

Sally huffed. "Well, I guess nothing can be done about it now. Why don't we grab some lunch in the meantime?"

Trowa hadn't realized it until now, but he was actually quite starving. He supposed getting kidnapped, jumping from moving vehicles, and trying not to drown or get shot was a good way to work up an appetite.

The group ended up walking a few blocks north to a large white building that reminded Trowa of the plantation style house residing in the middle of the compound. It was surrounded by a short, rod-iron fence and many matching chairs and tables had been set up over the brick patio to resemble a quaint neighborhood eatery.

"I'm a vegetarian," Sally said, after ordering some sort of cruciferous salad. Her eyes sparkled under the midday sun. "But don't let that stop you, I know Duo here can't help his carnivorous tendencies. Order anything you'd like- Wufei's treat."

Trowa watched Wufei throw her a sideways glare, but did not say a word in retort and he had a feeling this was the way their relationship with one another always went. The Chinese man did seem to have quite the sense of humor when he wanted to, after all.

In the end, Trowa settled for grilled tuna in some sort of quasi-offering to his host. Sally had been right though, Duo did manage to find the meal with the largest quantity of red meat on the menu.

They drifted into the casual conversation after their waiter had retreated back inside and Trowa felt the muscles that had grown quite tense since their earlier escapades start to slacken. He leaned back in his chair, admiring the way Duo's mouth seemed to curl with laughter as he ribbed Wufei about something or other; he wasn't particularly listening, too absorbed in the braided man for his ears to be totally functioning.

But then he realized that there were three sets of eyes on him, Duo's body suddenly rigid, Wufei's gaze sharp, and Sally's brows raised slightly in- was that concern?

Trowa cleared his throat. "Did I miss something?"

He hadn't actually expected the response to come from Wufei. The man was almost frowning. "I was just wondering what university you said you were studying at?"

For a brief moment Trowa couldn't figure out why the man was asking him such a bizarre question, but then his briefing, all those hours of protocol, began kicking against the walls of his brain. "Purdue. Grad school. Biology," he responded seconds later, his automatic response to background questions finally clicking back to life.

Wufei stared at him as if trying to read past a facade he shouldn't have known was there. Trowa hastened to remember how they'd even come to this topic in the first place. He cursed silently at himself for having let his guard down; this new Duo-centric infatuation was definitely starting to become problematic.

Duo was also giving him an odd look, though this one was more of near panic than scrutiny. The man turned to Wufei with a lax grin. "You know, I was just telling Tro the other day what a knack he has for animal care. Seems like a good field for him, doesn't it?"

Wufei did not respond, and apparently the tension building had now made it over to Sally as she decided to interject. "It does- we are glad to have you here, Trowa," she said, trying her best to not sound unsure. "But- I guess what Wufei and I have been wondering on is all the-  _trouble_  that you and Duo have seemed to be getting into lately."

"Trouble?" The word had tumbled out of Trowa's mouth before he could even analyze what had just been said. He knew he'd sounded dubious, possibly offended, but actually he was, above all, simply confused.

Sally shook her head. "I don't mean to accuse- it's just- well Duo you get into an awful lot of trouble on your own." The woman spoke towards the man in question, though her eyes never left Trowa. "But just in the past few days there's been a snake in your bed-" She held up a hand to halt a protesting Duo. "-you've run after poachers-" At that Trowa vaguely noticed Wufei looking a bit sheepish. "-and you even found yourself in the midst of a Ranger ambush."

Trowa had not said a word, had not even flinched as Sally rattled of his ever-growing laundry list of escapades (not including their recent brush with death in the form of an impromptu swimming excursion).

Sally sighed lightly. "Can you see why we might be-  _concerned_? Newcomers are usually a bit more hesitant, I suppose. They usually take weeks to adjust to even simply being around the wild animals."

After all this time Trowa hadn't realized that taking the initiative might end up being his downfall. Hell, he had't even thought he was being all that gung-ho; and that wasn't even a phrase that began to remotely live amongst his vocabulary. He swallowed and was about to respond, but Duo beat him to it.

"You can't honestly blame Tro for any of those things," Duo replied, his brows furrowing. "He's hitched his star to my unpredictable wagon remember?"

Wufei grunted in some sort of amusement and Sally's face seemed to become somewhat less tense. It seemed clear that one of the running jokes around the Compound was Duo's on-going battle with near-death and the series of unfortunate events that seemed to follow him at his heels. Trowa actually found himself grateful for the other man trying so desperately to pull the attention away from the real problems at hand, seeing as how warm Sally and Wufei were getting to the secret Trowa had only just shared with him a short time ago.

But, in the end, ignoring this now would only make things worse in the future; he just hoped Duo was good enough at improvisation to keep up.

"Actually-" Trowa hadn't spoken yet in response to anything that had been thrown at him, so when he actually opened his mouth Sally and Wufei seemed somewhat surprised. "There is something more to my being here."

Out of the corner of his vision Trowa could see Duo's eyes flicking between the three people before him, confusion mixing with a flush of anxiety. But, still, Trowa had faith in the man to catch on.

"You see, I'm actually looking for a friend of mine," he explained, still watching for Duo's reaction. After a second of realization he was rewarded with a tiny smirk playing at the man's lips. "A man named Milliardo Peacecraft."

Vision honing back on Sally and Wufei, Trowa watched as their dual reaction seemed to morph into one of surprise. Duo sat back in his chair slightly, understanding the new tactic that had since been chosen.

"Why didn't you say so in the beginning?" Sally wondered.

Trowa had to keep himself from biting his tongue as he spoke. "I didn't want to burden anyone else or be asked to leave because of my initial intentions."

Sally seemed somewhat appeased by that and nodded in soft understanding. Wufei pursed his lips. "Peacecraft did visit the Compound a couple of times, but we haven't seen him in quite a while."

Understanding Wufei's trepidation, Trowa gave him an imploring look from beneath his bangs. "Do you have any idea where he might have gone?"

He watched the other man's shoulders stiffen. "I have no idea where he would be. But have you ruled out the idea that he may no longer be living?"

Duo's chair, which had become precariously balanced on its two back legs, came crashing back to the patio beneath them. "Why would you say something like that, 'Fei?"

Wufei seemed incredibly unfazed by the other man's outburst. He shrugged as if the answer was simple. "The man asked a lot of questions and often about the wrong people. The poaching trade is not filled with reasonable people; they'd just as soon kill a person as an innocent animal if someone was getting too close to causing them any trouble."

Duo and Trowa shared a look across the table, trying their best to keep emotions in check even as the Chinese man's words rang true of their recent memories. Duo went back to his balancing act then and allowed Trowa to continue the conversation at his own volition.

He turned to Sally. "I certainly hope that I can continue working at the Compound. It may be true that I am looking for Milliardo, but I can assure you that I still take the work you're doing here very seriously- and honestly I need the credit."

Trowa hoped he sounded like the desperate student he was trying to portray, someone concerned with meeting grades and being able to pay back his student loans on time. He added a soft smile in addition to his words, just for good measure.

"Well, Duo is right about one thing- you're a great help with the animals." Sally smiled back, but then moved to place firm fingers around Trowa's wrist. "I am sorry that your friend is missing, but I don't want to see anything happen to you, Trowa. I would advise that you allow the police to handle missing persons cases- Wufei is correct, it's just too dangerous for civilians."

Out of the corner of his eye Trowa saw the wry smirk that wrapped Duo's lips, but he dutifully ignored it, nodding to Sally and trying to give her a genuine expression through use of innocent eyes. He thought he saw Duo choking on a laugh in his throat at that.

"Alright, its settled then," the woman said, acknowledging the other man's near sincerity. She pulled away from him and picked up her glass of tea to stare at the slowly melting ice cubes there. "It is a sad thing to think that money is winning, not the land and its animals."

Trowa decided that he could not argue with that sentiment as the table suddenly grew rather solemn. Duo even looked a little sickened by the all-encompassing thought. When their food arrived they managed to find new topics of conversation, much less serious and somber, though in the back of Trowa's mind the only thing he could think about was Wufei's words and the grave possibility that his assignment there had already become obsolete.

* * *

When the group made their way back to the Oz Corp warehouse a truck with a bed full of cages was just pulling up. Upon hearing the commotion of bald tires and coughing exhaust Trant made an appearance at the large metal doorway, another cigarette poised between his lips.

Sally made a beeline to the truck, her eyes alight with the concern she held for the animals being entrusted into her care. There were two warthogs suffering from some flu-like illness, a flamingo with fissures on her webbed feet, and a baby ostrich with an injured leg.

With all the hands they had it did not take more than a couple of minutes to load up the truck. When they'd finished Wufei was busy rolling his eyes as Duo cooed something unintelligible towards the small ostrich with shining, curious eyes and so as Trowa followed Sally silently towards the warehouse doors, his movements went unnoticed.

He was admittedly curious about Trant and the entire operation; the man's blasé attitude earlier seemed oddly out-of-line with what he'd experienced so far from the workers at the Compound and even the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority. The voice of Kushrenada echoed through the back of his mind:  _Money, kid, that's all the motive anyone needs._

Trowa stood just behind the two, leaning casually against the side of the warehouse in case he drew any attention. He was just close enough to see the clipboard Trant was holding towards Sally, but far enough away as to appear as an impassive observer.

Sally's shoulders rolled with annoyance. "Just give me pen, Trant. I don't have time for all this paperwork."

The warehouse manager seemed more than obliging as he thrust his clipboard, loaded with triplicate documents in a variety of colors, towards the woman. Sally grabbed the pen attached with a short chain and scrawled a signature across the bottom, barely bothering to look at anything else on the paper.

"I'm going to take a look at one of those warthogs- he looks worse than I was informed. Then we'll be off," Sally said before turning and heading back towards the truck, barely giving Trowa a second glance.

He wasn't sure if the explanation was for his benefit or for Trant's, but as he watched a small smile form on the older man's face as he checked over the paperwork in his hands, Trowa's mind clicked back into agent mode once again.

Trant, apparently too busy to notice the man watching him from his silent place against the warehouse, tossed the clipboard atop a stack of crates and made his way back inside, all the while puffing on his straggly looking cigarette between simpering lips.

Trowa couldn't believe his good fortune- things had been going wrong for such an extended period of his investigation that it almost seemed unlikely that there would even be anything worth knowing clipped to that board. But, he figured, it probably couldn't hurt to check it out.

Silently, with practiced ease, Trowa crept the few feet to the crates and managed a glance at the clipboard set conveniently at eye-level for him. Restraint abating, he set his thumb just under the corner of the top paper and lifted upwards to reveal the yellow carbon-copy underneath.

At first it appeared to be identical, as it should have been, but as Trowa's eyes roved over the contents of the document he realized with a twisting in his gut that it was nowhere near an exact duplicate. Sally Po's signature was there resting at the bottom, but instead of the animals listed being the two warthogs, flamingo, and ostrich, there were several exotic birds and a jaguar written in with scrawling handwriting he didn't recognize.

Trowa's eyes narrowed as he continued to flip through the papers only to find more animals that appeared to be 'signed' for by Dr. Po. He was about to unclasp one of the more hidden documents to take in as potential evidence when the sound of heavy footsteps echoed back towards the warehouse's entrance.

Cursing internally Trowa made sure to put a sizable amount of distance between himself and the clipboard before Trant made an appearance, looking around suspiciously as he grabbed his papers.

As Trowa made his way back towards the truck he was met with Duo hanging halfway out of the cab's back window. "You ready?" he asked, pulling his body back in to open the door. Trowa crawled in, trying his best to not allow his face to look as pensive as his mind was now threatening to become.

He watched Trant head towards the truck, tearing off the top page of the health certificate and handing it to Sally through the driver's side window as she fired up the car's air conditioning for their trip home.

"Everything's in order," he said, giving a little tap to the top of the truck's cab with his meaty hand. Sally muttered her thanks and then stuffed the white paper into her shirt pocket without a second glance.

The entire drive Trowa couldn't rid his gut of the impending discussion he would need to have with Duo when they'd made it back to the Compound. It was not a pleasant feeling.

* * *

The heat of the day was just beginning to subside as Trowa followed Duo to an enclosure he'd not had much exposure to since his arrival, though one he'd been rather interested in. For some unknown reason he'd always been fascinated by lions. Perhaps he felt akin to them, to their power, something familiar there. But then what would that make Duo? Probably a damn hyena stalking him just to have a good laugh.

He caught Duo staring at him as he found himself looking intently at the glowing, golden eyes of an old, male lion through a fence that seemed somewhat obsolete if the animal had truly wanted to escape. But upon closer inspection it was clear that this particular animal was more lethargic than searching for freedom.

"Sometimes you can be really intense, Tro," Duo muttered, laughing under his breath as he emptied a bucket of raw, red meat onto a tray before pushing it forward through the slot and into the waiting lion's cage.

Trowa's gaze did not flinch and surprisingly neither did the lion's, even now with the added distraction of dinner. "Why is he here?" Trowa wondered softly.

Duo sighed. "Natal's got cancer."

At that Trowa turned his head. He'd never given too much thought into the idea that an animal such as this could contract such a disease. "Does he receive treatment?"

Rather sadly Duo shook his head. They watched as the graying lion noticed the meat awaiting his large teeth, moving slowly from his lounging position to investigate, his scraggly mane flowing with the movement. "He's nineteen years old, a lot older than lions in captivity often live. Sally says the cancer is too aggressive and that chemotherapy will only prolong his suffering. So we're just giving him a comfortable place with us to live out his days. When his quality of life goes we'll probably have to euthanize."

Trowa watched as Duo's face contorted into something rather melancholy as he explained. He too felt heavyhearted at the news, but realized that in the wild the beast would not have even made it this long, healthy or otherwise. That was life, he supposed. Duo turned back to him with a soft smile. "You know, for a guy that's here undercover, you're pretty convincing when it comes to the animals."

Trowa shrugged, he'd not ever spent too much time thinking on such a thing before. "I suppose I just-  _identify_  with them on some level."

"I gotcha, man. Sometimes I feel like I've got more in common with them than I do with most people." Duo laughed inwardly, like he was almost embarrassed to admit it. But somehow, even if it was an odd revelation, Trowa knew exactly what he meant.

After they'd finished feeding Natal and visiting Raza with some apples Duo had filched from the kitchen as a final treat before her reintroduction the following day, the two men made their way slowly back towards the mess hall for a late supper. Trowa decided now was as good a time as any to explain what he'd discovered at the Oz Corp warehouse earlier, provided that no other workers were in earshot.

"Duo, earlier at Oz Corp I found something-  _disturbing_." Trowa didn't like the way he'd phrased this, sounding all too cliched for his liking, but it certainly caught his companion's attention.

He explained about the duplicate documents as Duo regarded him with surprisingly calm eyes. When he was finished he crossed arms over his chest waiting for an over-exaggerated response.

What he got managed to surprise him. Duo took a breath and spoke in an even tone. "I suppose we can't tell Sally that she's become inadvertently involved in the animal smuggling."

Trowa nodded rather hesitantly, caught off guard by the man's oddly intuitive knowledge of the protocol flooding the agent's mind. "Correct. If we tell her now and the Rangers get involved it will just hamper the investigation from the CBP's end."

He watched Duo with clinical eyes, noticing how the man seemed to be fighting down an argument, the one he had previously prepared for considering the loyalty he knew Duo would feel towards Sally and the Compound. Oddly enough it almost annoyed him that his roommate didn't bother to fulfill his desire to argue.

"So, Oz Corp's involved up to it's neck then?" Duo muttered, almost to himself as they kept walking towards the mess hall, a new air of seriousness surrounding them. "I did always get a weird vibe from Trant."

After dinner they found themselves perched once again on Trowa's bunk, both staring heavily at the palmtop resting on the bed between them.

Duo sighed raggedly. "I don't know if I have the mental capacity for cyphering tonight."

Trowa had to admit that he did agree with him, their unplanned adventure in Arusha had begun to take its toll as the sun dipped below the horizon earlier that evening. He wanted desperately to move the investigation forward, but fatigue wouldn't help anything, so he complied and put the piece of tech back into their dresser for as much safe-keeping as the dorm room afforded.

A few minutes later he found himself staring upwards at the bars holding up the top bunk, scrutinizing the metal and thin mattress that separated him from the braided man above.

"Duo?" he said, his voice rough and quiet in case the other man had already succumbed to sleep.

But after a few seconds he heard a rustling and then suddenly Duo's braid was tumbling downwards as he hung his head and shoulders over the edge of the bed to meet Trowa's gaze, upside-down. "What's up?"

For a moment Trowa had to rifle through his mind to remember just what he'd even wanted to say to the man as the child-like position made Duo look adorable in a way that Trowa had never thought he'd ever think attractive.

"Last night," he said slowly, deliberately. "You were- very adept with that knife."

It appeared, based on the quizzical look he was met with, that Duo had been expecting a very different memory to be brought up, one involving swollen lips and a lukewarm shower.

Trowa watched him blink a few times in the near darkness, the only light filtering in through the window being blocked almost entirely by Duo's hanging upper body. He had phrased the statement in such a way that it did not actually warrant a response and for a moment he thought the other man might ignore it or brush it off; he probably would have if the situation were reversed.

But then Duo licked his lips, almost distracting Trowa from his next words. "Growing up on the streets- you learn a thing or two."

Before Trowa could formulate a response of his own, Duo's body was pulling up, his legs swinging over the side of the bed until his feet dropped down to the floor with a soft thud of skin on tile.

Trowa was neither prepared nor expecting the man to lean forward against his bed, their lips brushing in a soft kiss, before Duo pulled back with a nearly unnoticeable smile.

"'Night, Tro," he whispered, almost breathlessly.

Duo then pulled himself up with ease onto his bunk as if everything that had just transpired was an entirely normal and practiced nighttime ritual. Trowa wasn't certain how long it was before he was able to close his eyes, but he did know that as tired as his body felt, even with eyes shut, his racing mind was not going to allow him much sleep after that.


	9. In The Heat Of The Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _He shook his head, trying not to allow the movement to be seen. Nonsense, this was all nonsense. When had he ever been one to jump to conclusions? When had he ever been one to feel the emotion of- jealousy?_

When Trowa awoke the next morning he was happy to have found that his mind had afforded him at least a small amount of sleep the night before. He stretched his muscles upwards, feeling their tightness from having literally jumped off a cliff the day before. He wondered briefly to check on the small wound Duo had received on his forearm, when the object of his thoughts leapt down from the bunk above as if he were just falling to earth.

Trowa could not stop the sensation of his mouth running completely dry as his eyes became glued to the slightly pallid skin of his roommate's ass, the muscles moving in a pleasing way beneath the surface as the man stretched his body upwards with a soft groan of satisfaction.

Last night Duo had not been so completely-  _naked_. Trowa found his thoughts racing to imagine when and why such a turn of events had taken place when his fingers were thrusting forward, coming to wrap around the end of the man's mussed braid and pulling softly to request his attention.

Duo reached back at the sensation and when he turned his eyes were narrowed, but there was something shining from within the indigo depths. He gave a wry smile and in a flash the entirety of his naked body was atop Trowa like a wild cat pouncing on its prey.

"Hey," he purred, his fingers wrapped around Trowa's wrists like they'd been the day before, though this time in a much more playful and arousing manner.

He sat down sharply against the top of Trowa's thighs, effectively pinning him to the bed, Duo's bare cock resting against the other man's with only a thin layer of cotton separating them.

Upon seeing his roommate's exposed form Trowa had felt an apparent arousal well up at the bottom of his stomach, but now with this new contact and that smirking gaze staring down at him like he was a piece of soon to be enjoyed meat, he felt himself grow almost instantly hard.

Duo leaned forward, creating even more friction between them, and played his lips against Trowa's own for only a second before his tongue began to trail its way from mouth, to ear, to neck, to chest, causing Trowa's muscles to stiffen in a needy manner.

Just last night Duo's kiss had been so tentative and tender, a good-night gesture that Trowa had never experienced before but often saw in movies or read about in books. Not something he ever would have thought himself worthy of. But now, with Duo's naked body grinding down against him, all sense of domesticated affection seemed to have gone out the window.

Teeth bit down against his left nipple and a sound he'd never heard before emanated from the back of his throat. Duo gave a throaty chuckle at the response, but just as he was lifting his head in preparation to verbally tease, there came a loud pounding on their door.

Both men startled so violently that their erections ground together almost painfully as the sound of Wufei's sharp voice filtered through their- thankfully locked- door.

"Maxwell! Bloom! You better be awake in there, we've got prep to do before Raza's reintroduction," he yelled, sounding rather impatient probably due to the stress and excitement of the day's imminent task.

"Yeah, yeah, we're on it, Chang!" Duo snapped back, his lips forming somewhat of a snarl at having been so rudely interrupted.

They heard what sounded like an annoyed sigh and then footsteps stomping back down the hallway. Duo turned back to Trowa and gave a somewhat sheepish look. "Well, you heard the man."

Trowa let out a groan, this time one of a different type of emotion. His teeth ground as the thought of pain he knew would visit them both shortly if they weren't able to complete the amorous task they'd so impulsively started.

He thrust his hips upwards to meet Duo's own arousal, but the man was already releasing him from his forceful grip. "Sorry, no time," he breathed. "We'll pick this up later- it'll be even better tonight."

Duo did not sound convinced by his own lackluster promise and Trowa couldn't help but feel a certain hatred towards Chang Wufei, even if the man had no idea or intention as to causing the two any-  _discomfort_.

After they'd both showered, separately and with as cold of water as they could stand, Trowa and Duo made their way from the dorms towards Raza's enclosure.

"She's been at the Compound for a while, right?" Trowa wondered as they walked, trying desperately to force his mind to switch gears. "Will the herd accept her that easily?"

Duo gave a small shrug accompanied by a knowing smile. "It's usually not as difficult as it sounds. And we're hoping Raza will be easy since one of the other elephants from the herd was also raised by Sally a few years back."

Trowa nodded. "They take care of their own."

Duo's shoulder found its way into the other man's arm, his eyes sparkling in the ever-rising sun. "Just like us humans, eh?"

They neared the enclosure and were met with a few greetings from fellow workers and the bustle and commotion of preparation. Sally was busy giving Raza one final bath, the hose spraying water violently on anyone in close proximity. The elephant gave a rather excited trumpet as Sally managed to strike Wufei's backside with a cool blast of liquid as he tried his best to make his way towards Duo and Trowa.

His face was flushed in annoyance as he pawed at the now soaking shirt sticking to his back. "Nice of you to make it," he bit out.

Duo's eyes rolled. "Chill, 'Fei. Everything's going to be great."

Wufei blinked, the words somehow seeming to placate the Chinese man rather than continue to ruffle his feathers. He wrung some excess water from the hair trapped at the back of his neck and turned to Trowa. "If everything goes as planned, you're in for one hell of an educational day."

Trowa was just glad to see that the man's obviously angered demeanor seemed to definitely be riding on his current stress level. It was still curious to him how Duo's teasing manor was somehow able to provide a sort of odd comfort for the man, their banter perhaps a well-appreciated outlet. But of course, Duo did seem to have that effect on most everyone around here.

"I'm here to help in any way you need," Trowa responded, keeping his voice a friendly as possible. He was also glad to see that Wufei had apparently decided not to dwell on the slightly awkward conversation they'd previously had at the restaurant in Arusha.

He realized that even if his investigation was once again being hindered by his duties at the Compound, both he and Duo had managed to make some semblance of progress what with their new lead in regards to Oz Corp. He was just going to have to let it go for the day and try his best to stay focussed on the task at hand. Wufei was probably right, it would hopefully be an interesting experience for him, if nothing else.

They all made their way towards the enclosure, Duo's smile widening with every step, and Raza greeted them with a misting of water spraying from her trunk as she held it playfully over their heads. Trowa wiped at the back of his neck, already feeling the sun beating down on his skin, his eyes vaguely following Duo's swaying braid, his mind wondering how the man managed to stay cool with such a cumbersome amount of hair. The plated locks decided rather abruptly to pull him back to their amorous activities less than an hour before and Trowa cringed inwardly, realizing it had been a dangerous path to travel back down.

Duo turned to him, his lips pulled wide. "Damn, I'm gonna miss this elephant, even all the times she's decided to give me an impromptu bath."

Wufei snorted a laugh. "I'm sure you can find someone else to help you with that."

Trowa watched as Duo's face froze and his cheeks turned pink, but Wufei was already walking away back towards Sally, some sort of triumph in his step. Duo whipped his head around. "You don't think-"

"No." Trowa's brows furrowed as he contemplated a bit painfully. "I don't think so, no."

The two men didn't have much time to think more on what their companion had implied however as Sally was now directing people, giving orders and waving her hands accordingly, a determined expression stuck to her features.

Trowa and Duo were about to make their way towards a waiting truck that Wufei was hauling himself into, when a rough trunk made its way to rest heavily against Trowa's shoulder. He turned to stare up at the large animal, a rarely genuine smile coming across his face.

Duo chuckled at the obvious affection Raza was showing when Sally strode up next to them. "You guys ready?" she wondered, patting against the trunk swaying lightly over Trowa's chest.

Sally pulled the elephant's nimble appendage away so Trowa could make his escape next to Duo. The braided man sighed outwardly, but the smile never left his lips. "You bet, doc."

The woman met both of their eyes, stroking at the animal's trunk. "Don't worry, I don't think she'll be forgetting us anytime soon. It's true what they say about their incredible memories. Elephants truly are conscious, intelligent, and emotional beings."

Staring at the way Raza seemed to caress Sally's shoulder like she'd done his own, Trowa couldn't argue with that.

* * *

The day was hotter than normal, the temperature climbing upwards with each passing minute as the sun rose higher and higher in the cloudless sky. Trowa wasn't sure he'd ever seen such a brilliant, unobscured blue in all his travels, even if it did mean the heat of the day would be near unbearable.

Wufei drove the truck towards a watering hole that had been previously scouted as the elephant herd's main gathering place. It was smaller than the one Quatre had pointed out to them days before, but the fact that it had a plentiful water supply made it the ideal spot for the large beasts in the apparent drought that the NCA seemed to be facing.

Trowa found himself in the passenger seat at Duo's request, while the braided man hung against his head rest the entire drive, though he hardly said a word. It was an odd occurrence to be sure, but Trowa figured by the way his body seemed to radiate nervous energy, that he was excited for what lay ahead of them.

They parked a good twenty yards from the actual watering hole, but the distance did nothing to hide the massive, gray-skinned animals looming before them. There were at least fifteen elephants of all sizes and ages, some smaller ones splashing in the water, a few more rolling their massive backs against the ground creating great clouds of dirt to billow around their bodies. There were a few that seemed older, surveying the others like elders watching over their family with a fierce loyalty that Trowa could almost sense filtering through the hot air.

He again found himself wondering just how easy this task was going to be, when another vehicle pulled up to join the several already there from the Compound. Trowa and his companions hopped down from their truck in time to be greeted with the beaming smile of Ranger Winner.

"I hope you don't mind my intruding, but the NCAA wanted a representative here. I'm sure Heero would have done it himself, but he's bogged down with paperwork," Quatre explained, his hands moving rapidly about in the air in front of him as if the movements were naturally linked to his words.

Wufei gave the blond a wry smile. "And I'm sure it didn't take much convincing on your part."

Quatre's cheeks seemed to glow. "You know I wouldn't miss Raza's big day for the world."

Trowa had happily found himself as an impassive observer to the conversation until Duo's hand came to rest against his shoulder blade, the sensation jarring him for only a second before he realized it was simply a casual gesture to grab his attention and nothing more.

"Did I tell you Quat used to work at the Compound?" Duo wondered off-handedly.

Trowa found himself shaking his head. "You hadn't mentioned it."

The Ranger almost looked a bit embarrassed by the fact that the three men were now all so suddenly focussed on him. Quatre shrugged. "I think perhaps you were my replacement, Trowa."

For some unknown reason this news somehow discomposed Trowa. Why should it matter- certainly none of this had anything to do with him or the investigation, it was all happenstance that he was truthfully not a party to in his undercover state. But then Duo's fingers were dancing lightly along his back and he felt his muscle quiver.

"Your old roommate?" Trowa wondered, his head turning to find Duo's eyes. He kept his voice even and conversational.

Duo nodded. "I thought I had told you that."

Trowa was sure he had and Trowa was also sure he hadn't been paying attention at the time, distracted perhaps by something else. But suddenly he was remembering the vague conversation, the affectionate air Duo took on around the young Ranger, the girl, Hilde, telling him how lonely Duo had been lately. Trowa was Quatre's-  _replacement_?

He shook his head, trying not to allow the movement to be seen. Nonsense, this was all nonsense. When had he ever been one to jump to conclusions? When had he ever been one to feel the emotion of-  _jealousy_?

An elephant trumpeted and the haze in his mind broke away in an instant. Duo's fingers were still resting on his back, though their tickling movements had since ceased. For a moment Trowa feared that the man had noticed his odd reaction to the simple conversation that had just transpired, but then he realized that everyone's attentions were now primarily directed towards the lumbering frame of Raza, walking happily through the grass between the men and the elephants on the other side.

Sally was there with her, patting her and bribing her along with a few treats. She was cooing something in the elephants ear, but the distance made it impossible to make out. Trowa felt his body being pulled to the ground so that he could view the scene through the tall stalks of golden grass.

From the corner of his eye he watched Duo watching Raza with that glowing expression he'd come to appreciate from the man. Trowa shook his head once more, inwardly chastising himself for thinking so wildly out-of-character just moments before.

From next to him Quatre was murmuring something in Wufei's ear which was acknowledged by a quick nod, some soft whispers, and a pointing finger out towards the watering hole. Now Trowa realized with a sense of understanding where the ease of the Compound's relation with this particular Ranger had spawned from. As an agent that should have been his reaction earlier, his only reaction.

Trowa turned his vision back towards Raza, watching as she seemed to completely ignore the herd not more than a few yards away, her eyes apparently only for Sally. The doctor did not seem surprised by this as she continued to play and slowly lead the elephant further and further away from the expanse of Compound workers and towards the herd.

A few more minutes passed and something surprising happened. A large elephant, several feet taller than Raza, was making its way towards Sally without any sense of hesitation or fear. Stopping a yard from the doctor, the large animal raised its trunk in the air and let out a loud trumpet. Trowa watched Sally step towards the elephant, her hand stretched outwards until her fingers came to rest on the previously sounding trunk.

"That's Cora," Duo whispered close to his ear.

"The elephant Dr. Po raised previously?" Trowa guessed, though it wasn't hard to see that he was correct by the way the animal allowed Sally to pet its rough skin and speak into its large, flapping ears.

Duo nodded and then gestured towards Raza. "Think she's jealous?"

Trowa felt some sort of odd heat burn just underneath his cheeks, but then he became distracted by the way the smaller elephant seemed suddenly curious as to why Sally had chosen to ignore her. The woman reached out a hand to Raza so that she was simultaneously showing affection to both animals now.

It was an incredible sight and Trowa couldn't help but realize that he had never, and probably would never again, experience something so oddly gratifying.

The other elephant, Cora, reached out her trunk tentatively, tapping at Raza's own before lifting back up to release another loud trumpet. Then Sally was moving backwards, giving Raza some encouraging pats until she reached the animal's backside and with all her strength began to push the elephant forward.

Duo let out a soft chuckle at the sight, but the gesture seemed to be working as Raza began to move slowly but surely towards the older elephant. Cora raised her trunk again and seemed to wave it in the air in the direction of the rest of the herd as if she were signaling for her new friend to join them. A few moments later Raza was surrounded as the herd closed protectively around her.

Trowa had not imagined elephants to be so tolerant and kind. He turned to Duo. "You were right."

Shrugging, Duo grinned. "That's why Sally's the best."

He was going to agree, but then suddenly something filtered into his nose, a smell Trowa was all too familiar with coursing its way into his mind. "Smoke," he said quickly, brows knitting.

Duo sniffed the air, but before he could respond, Wufei's head was rising above the grass to their left, his wide eyes scanning the area just as the sound of elephants trumpeting in a frantic manner began to echo around them.

Trowa's own head lifted then, his vision coming to rest on black, billowing smoke rising from the right of the watering hole, red and orange flames licking just above the dry grasses, eating away at the natural fuel with a frightening speed.

"Fire!" Wufei's voice was rough as he bellowed out the warning. Sally whirled around, her eyes rimmed with panic as she headed swiftly back towards her jeep just as the ground beneath them began to reverberate.

Instantly the image of the blazing fire became somewhat less terrifying as the sensation beneath them only grew. Trowa's gaze flicked towards the watering hole as he and Duo scrambled to their feet. The elephants were barreling towards them, the twenty-ton animals panicking and looking for an escape from the oncoming flames. Their sudden speed and alarm seemed inescapable as their pounding feet grew closer and closer with each passing second.

"The herd is stampeding!" came the frantic voice of Ranger Winner.

Trowa found his arm clenched in a vice grip, Duo's expression growing cold as the smokey air began to surround them. He spat out a curse, his eyes darting around frantically. "We've got to get out of their path before we're trampled to death!"


	10. Looking For Trouble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Trowa wasn't certain if it was nerves of anxiety or excitement that fueled the thick silence between the four men, but as the jeep rumbled up over the edge of a low hill the quiet was sliced with the sounds of staccato SMG fire._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Extra warning:** there is a bit of minor violence towards animals at the very end of this chapter.

The ground shook beneath their feet like an earthquake heralding their imminent doom. Trowa tried desperately to block out the emotion of fear as it travelled up his spine and entered his brain like any icy hand, but quite simply put, he'd never been damn well trained on what to do during a  _wild elephant stampede_.

At the head of the panicking pack was a large, bull elephant, his eyes wide in alarm, barreling straight towards them. Duo jumped ahead of Trowa as they ran, distracting him from looking over his shoulder and thankfully redirecting his thoughts back to the here and now.

"Our only chance is to reach the truck!" he threw backwards, their strides just at the heels of Wufei and Quatre heading straight towards the waiting vehicle, the Ranger jeep parked too far away making it a useless goal in a situation where every second counts.

Trowa managed to come just even with Duo, so close he could have reached out to touch the braid trailing behind him like it was suspended, floating underwater. Wufei was just wrenching open the truck's door and thrusting his key into the ignition before he'd even pulled his own body into the seat, Quatre joining him on the passenger side, while Duo's hand shot to the bed's tailgate to hoist himself upwards and leap inside.

Trowa was only inches behind, perfectly capable of making the same move himself, but as he dragged his body up and over the truck bed's corner as to not collide with the braided man, he felt a rough piece of metal slice straight through the flesh of his calf. His muscle convulsed into spasms at the painful incision, but the adrenaline coursing through his body allowed the injury to become numb only seconds later.

He was thankful that Duo had not noticed the bloody altercation as he quickly thrust his leg backwards to kneel on his knee and hide the pulsing wound. But only a heartbeat later did he recognize the dread that coursed through his body at the sound of the ignition faltering as Wufei continued to turn the key even as the engine coughed, seemingly dead.

"Give it some gas!" he heard Quatre yell out in a suggestion that seemed rather more like a powerful order, something he would not have expected from the petite blond.

The vehicle gave a rasp and Wufei tapped his foot against the gas pedal and then suddenly it was rumbling- albeit unhappily- to life. A second later and the truck was making a wild u-turn to head almost directly back towards the stampede. Trowa watched as Duo's mouth opened to protest, but then as the truck lurched forward, angling itself against the oncoming line of elephants, they both realized that it was the only way they would be able to make it out of their path fast enough to avoid being trampled.

Duo and Trowa had what felt like front row seats as the flames chasing after the helpless beasts grew higher against the sapphire sky, the truck seeming like it would not be able to make it out of their way in enough time. The right back tire hit against as protruding rock and the contact jostled Trowa, sending a shockwave of discomfort through the presumably shredded tendons in his leg.

The truck made a sharp turn past a grove of brush, a low-hanging tree branch nearly taking Duo's head with it. As he rose from his ducked position, his eyes came to rest heavily against the bloodstained khaki of Trowa's pants. He made a move as if to reach out and check the injury like he might have in any situation, but then the truck fishtailed violently, sending his back crashing against the metal side of the bed with a painful sounding thud.

Trowa as certain that the wind had been knocked out of him as Duo's eyes blinked, glazed, and his breathing seemed shallow before he managed to pull in a deep breath of air, coughing at the same time. This was no time for either of them to be concerned about the other's wellbeing- unfortunately that would have to wait.

The truck lifted up on two tires then, sending Duo's body sliding into Trowa's own, before the vehicle came to a squealing stop, clouds of dirt thrusting up into the air around them. Trowa peaked his eyes over the side just in time to see the last of the herd making their way to safety only a few yards short of their impromptu parking spot.

Meanwhile Duo had poked his head through the back window of the truck's cab. "Damn, 'Fei. That was close," he rasped out, his breathing still hitching from the jarring impact only a moment ago.

Ranger Winner's eyes turned backwards to observe him through the window as Wufei attempted to pry his white knuckled hands from the steering wheel he was still gripping.

"Alright?" Quatre wondered sharply.

Duo panted out a cough and shook his head. "No, Tro's bleeding out back here."

Trowa, perhaps going into shock, gave him a manic look, his face curling into somewhat of a snarl at the idea that Duo might think him so weak. "I am not. It's a flesh wound," he growled, trying his best not to let any discomfort register in his voice.

But Quatre had already exited the passenger side to peer over the bed's edge to examine Trowa's leg more precisely. "Definitely more than a flesh wound," he muttered, the Ranger's bare hands coming to rest on the man's slick calf, not even cringing once at the site or feel of fresh blood. "But right now some bandages from the first aid kit will do- I'm afraid we've got bigger problems on our hands."

Trowa then followed the smaller man's eyes back out across the grassland and towards the flames licking over the land, the expanse of the danger growing in all directions now. Quatre found the first aid kit, the small box having been thrown nearly out of the truck during their perilous escapade, and shoved it into Duo's nervous looking fingers.

"You take care of him- I'm going to radio headquarters," Quatre said, the air of authority creeping back into his genial voice.

At first Trowa wasn't certain why Duo's face had come to look so anxious, but then he quickly realized the scowl he still had adorned to his own. He tried to soften his features. "Duo?"

The braided man's eyes had seemed to drift in thought, but at the sound of his name he refocussed and then again upon seeing Trowa's more normal and calm expression he actually managed a crooked smile. "Hey- here- can you move-"

Trowa interrupted him by thrusting his injured leg forward, leaning on his hip to try and give the man a better angle to work with. Normally he would have begrudged anyone else's help in such a matter, but since it was Duo he allowed himself to be taken care of.

He watched as Duo rooted around the small kit for some gauze, mauve toned bandage wrap, and a small brown bottle of alcohol. Trowa tried his best not to cringe as the cool, stinging liquid made its first contact; pain was something he'd grown accustomed to, but still the sensation was not a pleasant one. Duo padded at the ragged cut, trying to assess the damage. "S'not as deep as it could be," he muttered.

Trowa was glad of that, realizing that if nothing else he was lucky to be living at a facility with the medical means he might need, even if Dr. Po and her staff did specialize in wild animal care; he didn't assume an injury such as this could be too different.

As if his thoughts had been voiced aloud, the sound of more tired engines alerted his vision to the Compound's other vehicles as they made their way towards the truck, Sally nearly hanging out the side of a jeep as the driver drew close. She jumped down and jogged the rest of the way, her face flushed.

"Is everyone okay?" she puffed out, blonde hair flying away from her twin braids and sticking to the glistening skin of her forehead.

"Well, we're all alive if that counts," Duo said, wiping at a small cut he'd received at his temple and then observing the minuscule amount of blood on the back of his hand a second later.

Sally turned eyes on Trowa, but before she could even voice her obvious concern he waved her off. "It's fine- I'm fine."

It looked as though in any other circumstances the woman would have probably argued that, but considering how thick the air around them had grown with smoke and dust, she really didn't have time for worrying over spilled milk such as this, at least in Trowa's humble opinion.

Quatre and Wufei had both exited the truck now to join Sally at the tailgate. "I've radioed Heero about the brushfire," Ranger Winner said, his voice calm, his apparent training for such emergencies coming through strong. "Rangers will be here in a few minutes, but we've got to get it under control if we don't want to lose thousands of acres of land and wildlife."

His words seemed to hit Sally full force in the chest. Trowa winced, but he was fairly certain it was from the way Duo's hand was now pressing against his wound none-too-gently and wrapping it with the sterile bandages and tape.

"The steri-strips I used should hold until we get back to the Compound. I'm thinkin' stitches on this one, Tro," the braided man muttered as he finished off with the roll of self-adherent wrap.

Trowa didn't much care as long as he could move, even if it was sure to be painful, he wasn't about to just sit by while everyone else had a job to do. This might be just another cover for him, but he couldn't find it in himself not to care about the environment around him, especially after everything he'd already been through at the Compound- including but not limited to his time with Duo.

Wufei had a pair of binoculars up to his eyes, scanning the horizon carefully. "The herd is heading west," he told Sally, lowering the device from his vision. "Towards Lake Natron."

Sally drug a hand across her forehead. "We have to keep track of them. Take my jeep- you and Hilde go after them. Let me know where they stop," she ordered, flicking her chin towards the still rumbling jeep, the young dark-haired woman still sitting behind the wheel.

The doctor then turned back to Trowa and Duo. "Are you up for this?"

Trowa nodded once, quite affirmatively. "Yes."

"Definitely," Duo responded, his voice almost overlapping Trowa's own.

Before the arrival of the Rangers, the Compound workers scouted the area, bringing shovels and any form of tools to beat back the flames manually, digging ditches to stave off their rapid expanse forward, heaving the piles of earth back onto the fire in attempts of suffocating it out.

Slews of Rangers trickled in to help with the fight, but it was not until a large truck driven by Ranger Yuy pulled up that their venture seemed like it might finally be coming to a head. The vehicle carried a large, gas-powered pump in its bed and after a quick assessment of the fire, Heero had the contraption's large hose thrown into the watering hole, allowing some of the Rangers to assist in spraying back the highest of flames until nothing was left of the disaster, but some smoldering embers and black trails of smoke and ash coiling upwards.

Afterwards, Duo had made his way purposefully towards Trowa, pulling the large spade from his grasp and all but forcing him to the ground to inspect his previously attended-to wound.

Trowa tried to thrust off Duo's hand from his shoulder, but the other man seemed to always be stronger than he made apparent. "It's okay- I can barely feel it," he insisted.

Duo's eyes rolled as he took in the already blood soaked bandages, the injury reopening from the jarring movements of the firefight. "Bull," he spat out, trying to readjust some of the steri-strips.

A man appeared behind their sitting forms then, a large navy bandanna pulled up to obscure half his face. When a hand reached up to pull the fabric down it revealed the scowling features of Ranger Yuy.

"What happened?" Heero asked gruffly, arms folding across his chest.

Duo stared up at him, squinting. "Tro's leg got cut up-"

"Yes, I can see that," Heero said, no amount of remorse in his voice which Trowa was ever grateful for. "I mean what happened here- the fire?"

The braided man looked around like he'd nearly forgotten that such an incident had taken place. Trowa stared at him, his brows furrowing, realizing how easily distractible Duo could apparently be.

Heero sighed raggedly. "Look, Sally's a mess, Chang's off chasing elephants, and Winner's over there-" he waved a hand in the general direction of some of the Rangers- "delegating troops. So you two are my next best option for explanations."

Duo's head was shaking from side to side. "I didn't see anything suspicious if that's what you mean. Brushfire's aren't that uncommon around here- especially in this drought."

Trowa wasn't sure he'd ever heard the man speak so quietly or logically before. His eyes titled upwards to meet Heero's own, his tongue coming to hit at the back of his teeth in need of escape. "You think it was deliberate?" he wondered softly.

Heero's gaze hardened, but he could not fight against the truth in his statement, Trowa could see that. "I will be investigating," he responded curtly, though there was no venom in his voice like Trowa thought there might be.

The Ranger turned then, thanking them for their help, and headed back towards the rest of the NCAA, the undertone of their conversation only spurring on the questions and suspicions inside of Trowa's mind once more.

* * *

"You're thinking so loud it's hurting my poor head," Duo mumbled between bites of his sandwich.

Trowa stared at him for a moment and then looked down at his own lunch, barely touched. It was true, he had been thinking- about the fire, about Oz Corp, about Merquise- so much so that he'd nearly become a distant observer of the reality he found himself in: sitting in the Compound mess hall, Duo on his right, Quatre across from him, and a room packed full of workers and Rangers conversing together and relaxing after their exhausting experience that morning.

"Just thinking about the herd," Trowa replied, his eyes flicking only briefly up towards the Ranger privy to their conversation.

Duo gave a shrug, picking at a piece of crust before letting the entire scrap fall to his plate. "They're safe for a while- until the poachers find them."

At that Quatre started, his pale brows coming together. "Duo, you shouldn't be so negative."

"Why not?" he snorted out.

Trowa leaned his arm sideways to tap Duo's elbow with his own. "You think it was poachers who set the fire?"

He tried to keep any of the appreciation he was feeling from coming through his expression as Duo nodded in affirmation; he himself had had the same speculative thought.

Then he turned his vision to watch for Quatre's reaction. The blond was frowning, but his lips were tightly pursed as he mulled the idea over. After a moment he propped his arm against the tabletop to rest his chin in his palm with a heavy sigh. "They'll have driven them off into a dessert- in this drought they'll never find another watering hole."

"Not necessarily." The three men looked up to be met with the hardened features of Chang Wufei. He sat down next to Quatre, fingers clutching a mug of hot tea. "I followed the herd about four miles south of where the fire began- they've found a watering hole we thought to have already dried up."

Duo's eyes brightened. "Then they've been driven to an area that the Rangers aren't watching. The ambush let the poachers know exactly what areas are and are not being monitored."

Trowa blinked- even he himself hadn't been able to put the pieces together like that so quickly. He turned to Quatre. "Is that true?"

The other man's gaze seemed to waver for a second. "The NCAA only monitors areas with abundant wildlife- the reason why we've been keeping such heavy tabs on the remaining watering holes. But if there's an area we thought to be abandoned, but now is not-"

"We've got to tell Heero," Duo interrupted abruptly.

Quatre grimaced. "He's gone to Arusha to meet with the authorities there."

Trowa watched as Duo's lips all but curled in frustration. "Then we've got to go ourselves."

"I don't know..." the Ranger's concern seemed to trail off into nothing comprehendible, all sense of authority he'd harbored earlier suddenly cloaked.

Wufei placed a calm fist against the table top, his presence almost having been forgotten. "We can take a Compound jeep. Sally might not necessarily approve, but-"

"Fei?" Duo sounded incredulous, his lips pulling downwards as he stared at the Chinese man in near confusion.

The man shook his head in response. "You can't expect me to sit by and let you go chasing after armed poachers without a bit of backup." Wufei actually smirked at Duo's wide eyes and Trowa decided that he enjoyed this side of the man very much.

"I can't let you go alone either," came the soft, almost regretful voice of Quatre. But after a moment his expression turned from concern to hardened determination. "Three is always better than two."

Trowa cleared his throat pointedly, drawing the other three men's attention to him like a magnet. Quatre looked sheepish, but Duo just slapped a hand against his shoulder. "Don't worry, Tro. I'd never go off looking for trouble without ya."

Trowa wasn't sure, thinking about what had just been said, if he was quite glad of that sentiment or not.

* * *

"This'll benefit the investigation- the animal smuggling portion- won't it?"

After lunch the four men had decided on a departure time just before sunset, trying for the most innocuous time to slip out of the Compound without getting much flack. Since then it had been a long, sweltering afternoon of enduring eight stitches in his leg, hosing down cages, and assisting in maneuvering an awkward and rather uncooperative zebra into the lab for an x-ray. Now he and Duo found themselves back in their dorm room for a brief moment of solitude before their trek in search of Raza and the herd. Or at least it was supposed to be a moment of solitude, but since they'd entered there had been an indeterminable tension in the air.

Duo turned to him after he didn't answer. "Hello, earth to Trowa! This is a good thing we're doin' right?"

Trowa blinked, trying to clear his mind of the wave of thoughts and concerns that had once again wracked him. "Yes. I believe so."

"You don't sound so sure," Duo responded, walking over to rest his forearms against the frame of his bunk and loom over Trowa's seated perch on his own bed.

Trowa just shrugged. "It may not benefit the investigation at all. But I believe it is the right thing to do."

Duo leaned forward to swipe lips across Trowa's own. Almost instantly a shock of remembrance to their earlier activities hit him low in the gut. He looked up and met indigo glowing through the shadow Duo created standing between them and the overhead lamp.

"You're cute when you get all righteous and empathetic," he said with a near genuine grin. But then he moved fingers to scratch at the back of his braid almost as a reflex to the words, pulling away before Trowa could reach up and claim another kiss.

Feeling somewhat whiplashed, Trowa huffed a sigh before standing to retrieve the pistol he'd been borrowing lately, slipping his knife in place in the holster at his ankle. He wondered vaguely if the Rangers new any of the Compound workers carried or had access to such weapons, but then he remembered the way Heero had acted towards Duo on the night of the ambush and decided not to dwell on the thought.

It was not much longer before they were reuniting with Wufei and Quatre, an open-air jeep already parked at the Compound's front gate. Not another soul was wandering around to observe them and Trowa figured it had been quite a hard day for most everyone, Rangers included, and an evening of rest and recreation would be well deserved- lucky for them.

Despite Quatre's earlier apparent hesitance he took the wheel, driving the group out into the darkness of night with most of his earlier confidence restored. Despite the moon's waxing rays, a thick pack of clouds overhead hid much of the available light, leaving the jeep to rely on its headlamps, the glowing beams only just able to illuminate the thin dirt road ahead of them.

Wufei held an outdated looking map, a penlight clenched between teeth as he navigated according to his earlier notes from tracking the herd. Every once in a while the light would illuminate off of his wire-framed readers and catch Trowa's eye. He and Duo sat in the backseat, the oddness of that being in that Duo's body sat in the more awkward center seat rather than next to the left window like he could have chosen. The heat between their bodies was palpable as they drove across the ever-cooling landscape.

Trowa wasn't certain if it was nerves of anxiety or excitement that fueled the thick silence between the four men, but as the jeep rumbled up over the edge of a low hill the quiet was sliced with the sounds of staccato SMG fire.

Quatre immediately gunned the engine forward, the counterbalance throwing Duo and Trowa backward in their seats as Wufei threw down his map to retrieve a Glock from within a shoulder holster hidden beneath his thin jacket.

The fire was soon drowned out by the bone-chilling trumpets of frightened animals, the ground pounding with frantic feet just as it had done during the stampede earlier. Wufei raised his gun high above his head cracking off a full round of ammo in some kind of last ditch warning.

The sounds of engines could be heard then and as their jeep grew closer to the watering hole they could hear voices shouting and the uncanny reverberation of chain-saws whining to life. Trowa had hands on his own weapon, the inky blackness of night fighting hard against their vision, when the cracking sound of bullets registered just off of their right side. Instantly the sickening noise of tires being blown-out hit their ears just before the jeep began to swerve under the new complication.

Quatre let out a fierce growl from the front seat as he desperately tried to regain control of the vehicle, halting it just as its momentum had nearly carried them into an irreversible roll. Trowa's eyes darted next to him to catch Duo's own, the orbs glowing with something he'd seen before, the same dark intensity from the night of the ambush.

In silent agreement the four men pulled themselves from the vehicle, Trowa hoisting himself up and over one of the roll bars to land on nimble feet, gun poised and ready. But the sound of gunfire and coughing engines was slowly dying out. In fact, the only sound either man could make out now as they ran full force towards the watering hole was the indisputable sound of agony-ridden cries combined with the thickness of silence.

It was Duo who got there first. It was he who found her, lying against the dirt floor of her rightful home, her trumpets having turned now to mere mewls of pain and confusion.

It shouldn't have been Duo to find her first, to deal with the blood pouring from the wound on her right leg. It shouldn't have been Wufei or Quatre either. It should have been him, he was the most removed from the situation, he was the one trained in crisis intervention, trained to act first and ask questions later. But it had been Duo.

They gathered around her for a moment, the moon's soft glow reflecting in her large eye that stared up at them as if searching for some justification. Wufei moved quickly, Quatre at his heels to assess the other damages, the other casualties around them.

After a moment, his hands red and shining, Duo looked up as Trowa crouched next to him, his hand unconsciously moving from Raza's slowly heaving stomach to the other man's shoulders.

Trowa swallowed and then opened his mouth to say something, anything. "She'll be alright. I'm going to find who did this," he whispered, some sort of resolve creeping into his voice that he'd never heard before.

But his promise had not been a lie- his investigation here had just gotten way more personal for that.


	11. Blackout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _That night he slept soundly, fingers running against Duo's skin until he fell into deep oblivion, no dreams to assault him or keep him awake._

"Those sick fucking bastards!"

Trowa was holding hard to Duo's muscular frame, wiry and lean as it was, suddenly he seemed more powerful than any animal they might find out on the planes of Tanzania.

Wufei stood by, almost hesitant to intervene as Duo had broken into the sudden and unexpected fit of rage and disbelief. But despite the man's best efforts and clawing fingers, Trowa was still taller and larger than him, though if they kept this struggle up much longer he wasn't going to be able to keep his grip on whatever it was that Duo had decided to turn into.

Meanwhile Quatre was leaning forearms against the hood of their jeep, the vehicle useless save for the radio. He spoke in soft, rapid tones, presumably to Ranger Yuy or someone else from the NCAA, every once in a while his aquamarine eyes lifting to assess their surroundings with careful fluidity.

"You cannot go after them," Trowa murmured again, though any words of reason or calm seemed to bounce back at him shredded by Duo's hoarse voice.

They'd moved now, dragging Duo along with them the moment he'd decided that he wanted nothing more than the blood of the poachers who'd attacked the herd, though they were still within a distance to be able to see the large animals, mostly still against the ground, though Quatre had managed a few rudimentary bandages to the few still breathing, including Raza. Now all they could do was wait for reinforcements to arrive.

"Remember what you told me, Maxwell. You'll never catch up to them on foot." Wufei was doing his best job of speaking in an even tone, trying his hardest not to succumb to the same rage Duo had fallen into. Now knowing his background with poachers, Trowa admired the other man's strength in doing so.

"We have to do something." Suddenly Duo's body slackened, his head leaning back against Trowa's shoulder, as if defeated or just simply exhausted by his tirade. His voice was weak and sounded almost scared, something Trowa had not expected of the man until now.

Wufei stepped forward, his dark eyes somehow glowing against the backdrop of inky nighttime. He placed a hand against one of Trowa's own until he had released Duo fully from the powerful embrace he'd adopted earlier to keep the man as still as possible.

Duo slumped forward, but kept his footing to stand, head bowed slightly. Trowa wanted desperately to know if it was shame or fear that caused him to take on such a sullen and out-of-character pose.

Wufei leaned in then, grasping the man's shoulder with strong fingers. For a long while his lips stayed close to Duo's ear, whispering something that Trowa could not make out, nor did he try considering the quite intimate pose the other two had taken up. Whatever it was, it was none of his business.

It took a long while after Wufei had finished speaking for Duo to pull away from the comfort that apparently Trowa had been inept at providing. He felt, only for a brief second, saddened by that thought, but then his mind was pulled back to reality as the sound of car tires against gravel and dirt alerted them to the vehicles now pouring down the small incline towards the watering hole.

An hour later the site had been filled with the glowing light of LED lanterns, at least twenty workers milling about tending to the injured elephants, while doing their best to honor the recently deceased. Rangers were there too, some helping with medical supplies while others created the look of a rudimentary crime scene by searching for traces and fingerprints- something Trowa knew all too well- looking for anything that might help them in their investigation.

Duo had immediately wanted to help, his body finally easing back into its normal state when the Rangers had first arrived. Trowa had done his best to assist as well and upon the surprising request from Ranger Yuy he'd even surveyed the scene with the man, giving him the most detailed account that he could as his fellow witnesses seemed busy with worrying about things other than reliving the brutal memories.

They spoke of the guns again- the automatic weapons- and of the chainsaws- the amount of ivory taken, which ended up being very little. The thought had made Trowa inwardly just as angry as Duo had been earlier, and he willed himself not to let it show. Heero had gotten to the point where he barely spoke, regulating his breathing to show that he too was obviously just as frustrated.

And so when Heero had advised Trowa take Duo back to camp, he'd been more than obliging, knowing he'd done all he could in order to further both his assignment as well as the NCAA's.

He'd found Duo, his hands now coated with blood, his face tired, a deep frown creating lines unbecoming of the young man, speaking with Sally Po, their voices too low to make out the conversation though Trowa could have guessed as to the subject.

As much as it bothered him to take in Duo's current appearance, perhaps the appearance of Sally- usually so bright and cheerful- was what got to him the most. She stood, posture slumped, hands wringing at a scarlet soaked rag, streaks of dirt and blood marring her skin, blonde hair flying this way and that in the soft breeze surrounding them. She looked torn apart, like the men who'd attacked these innocent animals had simultaneously ripped out her heart, like they'd done with Duo's.

After a few moments he led Duo back towards the jeep Heero had tossed him the keys to, the braided man not saying much other than expressing his exhaustion and surprising willingness to head back to the Compound with his roommate.

Trowa had not said a word, but before they climbed into the waiting vehicle Duo had turned to him. "They were like family to Sally," he muttered, his normal voice wavering through, though he did sound entirely out of breath.

Trowa mulled the thought over, picturing both Sally and Duo's faces in his mind as he drove back through the cloak of nighttime. For some unknown reason he could only assume that Duo was not just speaking for Sally.

* * *

When they'd gotten back to the Compound Trowa had persuaded Duo into the showers before him, realizing that privacy might be what the other man wanted or needed, even if he would not admit to it himself.

Trowa had busied himself by stowing their weapons and taking out his palm-top to finish typing out a report he'd started earlier, staring down at the glowing screen until his eyes became too strained and he had to put it away.

Duo had come back a minute later and Trowa stood, unsure if anything should be said, but the other man actually managed to meet him with a soft smile, looking somehow ethereal with his skin slightly pink from the hot shower, his bangs hanging down loosely around his face, hair wet but placed back into its signature braid. Trowa swallowed down those growing feelings roughly before grabbing his own towel and heading towards the showers.

He stood still in the middle of the stall letting the water beat down on his skin, not bothering to adjust the temperature when it had become too hot. Instead he allowed his body to regulate, the scalding sensation somewhat necessary as it managed to bring back his sense of touch- something he'd been without since his body had numbed over as soon as he'd seen Duo kneeling next to Raza.

Trowa thought about how rapidly things had changed over the simple course of twenty-four hours. He and Duo in bed, writhing and practically naked, interrupted and irritated, blushing and questioning. Then the fire- his leg throbbed for a moment as water trickled down over his bandage, the pain only registering in his mind for a second. Then the poachers, the gunshots, the blood. He'd not ever wanted to see these things, he'd not ever wanted to see the way Duo had changed upon seeing these things himself. It was a horrible memory, yet when he pictured the man's features in his mind he could not help the tiny flutter than crossed over his midsection.

Stupid and irresponsible, letting his body and emotions drag him this way and that like the unpredictable flames they'd encountered earlier.

Trowa sighed roughly, dragging fingers through his soaking hair to pull it backwards off of his face and forehead. How could he be thinking of Duo like that, in such a way that his body reacted almost instantly to the image in his mind, no matter the one he chose. Something was not right here.

After he'd dried his skin, leaving his hair to drip down his neck and back, Trowa wrapped the towel about his waist securely and walked towards their room, opening the door slowly to slip in as quietly as possible since the lights had been turned off, signaling his roommate was already in bed, probably asleep.

But as he made his way across the small room, in search of the fresh clothing he'd laid out for himself, the pierce of indigo shocked him as his eyes found Duo, still wrapped in his own towel, laying on his back in Trowa's bunk.

"You're in my bed," Trowa stated, his mind not working quick enough to come up with any other response.

Duo nodded once. "Yes, I am."

Trowa then gestured to the top bunk. "I can sleep up here tonight."

"No." Duo sat up on his elbow to stare the other man down. There was something in his expression, in the darkness there, that Trowa recognized. Something he'd seen twice now, something almost feral and chill-inducing.

He swallowed. "Duo." He'd tried to make his voice powerful and serious, but it had come out meager and almost confused.

Duo was rising now, like his body had been commanded to. The towel fell from his narrow hips, hitting the floor as he moved forward. Trowa stepped back unsure, instinct overriding any other emotion that had begun to slosh through his veins. Again, he had to tell himself that something was not right here.

"Duo," he said again, this time sounding more like himself, yet still the warning there had no effect on the other man. Duo advanced, his eyes sunken within the shadows of their room, illuminated only sparsely from whatever light filtered in from the window.

Trowa found his back hitting the wall before he could think of anything more to say. Even though Duo was now clean, Trowa could only imagine his face marred with blood. "What are you doing?" he asked, his voice soft as Duo placed a hand on either side of his shoulders against the wall. He was shorter and therefore had to lean upwards to capture the other man's lips.

They kissed once but after it broke, Duo did nothing to move away more than a couple of centimeters. "I want you." He punctuated the words with another kiss, this time deeper and longer than the last. He pulled away again, only to breath out, "I want this."

Trowa shuddered as Duo's fingertips trailed lines down his bare chest, running across hardened nipples, down over his quivering abdomen, to the towel still snug at his waist. He paused there, fingers at the ready, and looked back to find Trowa's vision, half-lidded now. "Do you want this?"

He tried to steady his breathing, tried to calm his body, but he knew Duo could tell how aroused he'd become, just from the thought of it. He shouldn't, this was not right, this would not be appropriate given the circumstances. Trowa tried to speak, but no words would formulate on his tongue; instead he nodded, leaning into the other man's touch in anticipation.

Duo pulled and the towel was gone, his hand traveling back up Trowa's muscles sending shivers until he placed palms powerfully against his shoulders, pushing him into the wall to claim Trowa's lips in a bruising kiss.

The roughness sent the man over the edge, forgetting his earlier concerns, Trowa's hands grabbed Duo's ass, kneading the flesh there, feeling the hardened muscle and growling out as teeth clenched his lower lip.

A guttural laugh left Duo's mouth as it began to travel down Trowa's neck, laving at flesh and nipples, sucking and teasing until the other man was kneeling before him. The first touch was gentle, wet, tentative, almost too soft, and Trowa bucked forward. Duo sat back on his haunches then to look up through unruly bangs with a wild light in his eyes.

"Do you want this?" he asked again, his tone husky and playful.

Trowa managed to find his voice this time. "Yes," he bit out. He'd wanted this from day one, hand't he? Hadn't Duo?

A tongue twirled around the tip of his hardness, licking and tasting there, until the entirety of his cock was enveloped in warm, wet heat. With a gasp Trowa's head leaned back against the wall, his eyes squeezing shut at the intense sensation.

Duo was talented, more talented than Trowa could have ever predicted. If it weren't for the mind-numbing pleasure the thought might have hastened more questions about the braided man to manifest in his mind. Instead his eyes flashed open to look downward towards those lips encircling him.

Since their session earlier that morning Trowa had been waiting for a moment like this as he felt heat rising in his gut. But if they were doing this, if they were committing to this, then he had other ideas to attend to other than just a simple blow job.

"Duo," he grunted out, thrusting fingers into the other man's hair to pull his head back. With a pop Duo released, the sensation of cool air hitting his shaft one that made Trowa involuntarily grown.

Duo licked at his lips as Trowa moved hands to his shoulder blades in attempt to get the man to rise. When they were both standing he leaned down to retrieve a kiss, tasting himself, and shivering as Duo brought his body close to grind against Trowa's own.

The kiss grew deeper, more frenzied, teeth colliding and tongues warring against one another, and Trowa found his hands traveling down the planes of Duo's back until he broke the kiss with a gasp, leaning down and pushing off the wall to grab at the man's thighs and lift.

He held Duo to him, muscles rippling with the new weight, as legs wrapped around his midsection to trap Duo's erection between their bodies. Trowa kissed him again, softer this time, tasting every inch of the man, his tongue leaving a trail down warm skin, sucking at his neck and shoulder.

Duo let out a rough sigh of pleasure and the sound caused Trowa's own hardness to throb as it came into contact with Duo's backside. His feet were moving then, carrying the man to the bunk he'd earlier been resting on, lowering him carefully to the mattress before placing his knees on either side of Duo's hips.

"Do you have-"

Duo was already pointing towards one of the dresser's smallest drawers. "Right side," he hissed out, almost impatient.

Trowa quickly retrieved what he was looking for, already spreading the cool gel against his fingers as he made his way back towards the bunk. Duo stared up at him, having turned his body to fully lie against the bed, one leg staying flat, while the other was bent at the knee; an inviting pose.

Trowa knelt between his legs, positioning a knee beneath Duo's own, resting his other to prop and raise the man's flat appendage to match. He bent forward to kiss Duo's lips, kiss down his sternum, suck and nip first at his right nipple, then the left. By the time his lips had made it down towards the very hardened cock, Duo was all but writhing with need.

Trowa placed a long finger at the man's entrance, swirling the gel there before plunging forward, feeling the tight ring of muscle resist for only a moment before relaxing and allowing him further exploration. He pushed and twisted and massaged at the muscles there before adding a second finger, his lips brushing against Duo's cock as he did so.

The braided man gasped and he moved further, scissoring fingers to loosen and prepare, before moving the tips of his fingers in search of something. When he'd found the little bundle of nerves Duo had tensed for only a second before bucking forward as Trowa's tongue trailed up the side of his hardness, fingers prodding at the source of immense pleasure several times.

Duo moaned when Trowa removed his fingers, his eyes flashing open to watch the man rolling a condom down his own length, applying extra lubrication with practiced ease. The braided man curled his hips higher in expectancy as Trowa put the tip of his length at the prepared entrance.

He stopped short of pushing forward to set Duo with a certain smirk he'd picked up over the last few days. "Do you want this?" he wondered, just as teasing as the other man had been with him earlier.

Duo's eyes rolled harshly, his teeth gnashing. "Goddammit Tro," he hissed out. "Fuck yes I do. Would you just-"

To stop the oncoming berating, Trowa thrust forward, filling the man halfway and causing his words to catch in his throat. He allowed Duo's body to adjust to the new intrusion and then pushed again until he was fully seated in the silky muscles of the man beneath him.

He went slow at first, unsure of what Duo might want or could handle, but the other man was egging him on, breathing harshly, panting, nearly sending Trowa over the edge. He knew he'd hit the right spot when Duo's eyes flashed open, and Trowa then placed shaking fingers around the man's cock, grasping and pumping in rhythm to his thrusts.

Duo stared at him for a moment, almost confused by the gesture, but as Trowa threw his hips forward with more power, the other man's eyes glazed at the sensation, muscles beginning to tighten even more around Trowa's own length.

It didn't last much longer, both men having suffered from the need and want for this since their stress relief in the shower days before. Duo went first as Trowa pounded hard against his prostate, the man's body shivering and arching, in turn sending Trowa over the edge, if for no other reason than the incredibly erotic sight taking place beneath him.

They lied there then for a moment, out of breath, and neither quite knowing what to say next. The idea of 'thank you' wracked Trowa's throat, but then he'd quickly swallowed it down realizing the implication there. They had both wanted this, they had definitely covered that idea on more than one occasion.

Duo was the first to rise, removing himself from beneath Trowa's outstretched arm across his midsection. Trowa stayed on the bed, watching the other man grab a towel to clean himself off. After a moment he realized the used condom was still in place so he took care of that, tying it off and throwing it in their small trash bin.

Duo tossed him the towel he'd used earlier from its place haphazardly thrown to the floor. He wiped his body as well and found a clean pair of underwear to pull on. The smaller man walked towards him, both half-clothed by now, and they stood in front of one another, awkwardly at first until Duo raised a hand to place it in the middle of Trowa's chest, his fingers cool against the still warm skin.

"I can sleep in my own bed, forget that this happened, if that's what you want," he whispered, eyes raising but not fulling coming into contact with Trowa's own.

Trowa shook his head and then reached out to raise Duo's chin to lock-in the gaze. "No," he replied simply, placing lips not on Duo's own, but against his forehead in a gesture he'd never actually had the compulsion to use before.

That night he slept soundly, fingers running against Duo's skin until he fell into deep oblivion, no dreams to assault him or keep him awake.

* * *

"Shit- I can't believe I didn't see this before."

Trowa looked up from his palm-top, report near finished now, to stare at Duo who'd recently taken to pacing up and down the small length of their room with his eyes glue to the codes on Merquise's own piece of tech. They'd miraculously been given the day off considering all that had transpired in the past twenty-four hours and Trowa was grateful of that- finally he seemed to be catching some sort of worthwhile break.

Of course their activities the night before had certainly been worthwhile, and quite a stress reducer as well, but after waking up delightfully entangled in Duo's arms he'd come to the conclusion, that while a sunrise romp was enticing, he needed to focus. Thanks to Sally he would be able to focus all day long if need be and finally get some more solid leads on his assignment.

So there Duo was, pacing and mumbling to himself while Trowa only half listened and only half told the the truth to his superior- he figured at this point she was really only on a 'need to know basis' anyways- and so when the braided man had whipped around to face him, excitement glowing in his eyes, Trowa had all but thrown his own palm-top to the ground.

"What? What is it?" he asked, making a move to stand. But Duo was already scrambling towards him, coming to bounce against the lower bunk and thrusting the small computer towards Trowa's face.

"Look at these," Duo said, pointing to some letters on the screen. He read them aloud, "D-M-A-U-"

But Trowa's mind suddenly seemed to clear and the energy radiating off of the man next to him somehow jogged his mind back into the mode of an agent. " _Duma_ ," he whispered, deciphering just what kind of code Merquise had used and feeling rather ignorant for not having caught something so simple in the first place.

"Right!" Duo snatched the palm-top back and went to make an identical list next to the jumbled letters- only this time he filled it one by one with Swahili words, all names for animals found right here in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

After a few moments of silence, Trowa watched as Duo finished his work and leaned back against the wall to furrow his brows, still staring at the screen. "They're all unscrambled, but I don't really see how this is going to help us."

Trowa took the palm-top back to study the list. He wondered at first if perhaps it was a catalogue of animals that had been smuggled, but quickly crossed out that theory as the list certainly wasn't long or diverse enough for that. His eyes roved the screen, trying to look for a pattern, or to find something odd that stood out to him. He wasn't sure how long it had been before a soft smirk wrapped his lips.

"You did your part, now I'll do mine," he said, turing the tech so Duo could also see. "Watch."

With a tool to highlight, Trowa took his pointer finger and, starting at the very top of Merquise's list, drew downwards to capture the first letter of every word listed. When he pulled back it spelled out a sort of acrostic: D-R-Y-C-H-U-M-V-I.

"Dry chumvi?" Duo's eyes shifted from the palm-top back to Trowa, brimming with realization. "Chumvi is Swahili- it means salt. But it's also associated commonly with  _Natron_."

"As in 'Lake Natron'?" Trowa wondered, remembering the name from when Wufei had spoken of it the day before to Sally. "What's there?"

Duo shrugged. "Nothing as far as I know. It's a saline lake north of the Arusha District, but I'm willing to bet it's as dry as the rest of the watering holes around here."

For once when Duo turned his gaze to search his roommate for a response, it wasn't he who harbored the conspiratorial grin, it was Trowa.

* * *

The jeep ambled along the dirt path littered with shadows, reflecting the billowing clouds overhead. It was still just as hot as the days past, but the slight cooling effect of the clouds was yet another thing to be thankful for.

It wasn't a particularly long or grueling trip to Lake Natron, but Duo had chosen the opportunity to fill the air between them with stories of all shapes and sizes, including one about Heero in silk boxers in the middle of the Compound a few years back that had Trowa nearly driving them off the road.

A few days before, back in his boring, normal life in the states Trowa would have found himself annoyed by the motoring tongue beside him. He would have found his mind on overdrive thinking about the case, analyzing and organizing data and facts, but now as his eyes glinted sideways at his companion, he could barely remember his cubicle or his stark little studio apartment. And in the end, this was a change which he was glad to welcome.

When the scenery finally opened up, turning from grassy hills to a slick looking flatland, Trowa finally saw Lake Natron in the distance. It was desert-like indeed, with a few tufts of green grasses sticking out at the edge of a very low looking body of water that seemed to trail in an odd expanse right and left, creating the large and uneven lake. There were little dots of pink that, as they drove closer, could be made out as a great flock of flamingoes basking in what water was available to them. Just behind Natron rose an almost volcanic looking mountain, blue hued and peaking into the cloud covered sky;  _Ol Doinyo Lengai,_  according to Duo.

Trowa stopped the jeep short of the lake, not wanting to disturb any of the wildlife, and he and Duo hopped out to take in the surroundings. They stretched and Trowa managed to only stare at Duo's golden stomach for a moment as his shirt rode up when he lifted his arms over his head towards the sky.

He was listening closely to the far off sound of the flamingo's warbling squawks, when Trowa's eyes came to rest on the slightly moist ground beneath his boots. There, winding beneath their feet in the dirt, were thick tire tracks; fresh ones, Trowa had no doubt.

Going to one knee he studied the indentations, eyes following them down and then veering slightly away from Lake Natron and then disappearing past where his vision could make out.

Duo had noticed them now too, bending at the waist to place hands against his knees. "They've got to be recent," he said, confirming Trowa's initial suspicion. "Look at all the animal tracks you can see beneath them."

Trowa looked to see that the ground had indeed been crossed by several different types of animals, but none looked as fresh as the tire-tracks. "Between weather and the animals nothing could last more than a day or so out here," he responded, nodding as things started to fall into place in his mind.

Duo stood then, heading back towards the jeep. "Let's follow them and find out. Tours aren't especially common out this way and the vehicles used by the Compound and the NCAA wouldn't make treads like that."

They drove along slowly, stopping for tracks periodically. When they'd come to a tougher, harder piece of ground it seemed they might lose the trail, but not much farther down they'd come across a muddy expanse where they could continue on.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, they came across an area shrouded by a few trees and some unruly underbrush. There was a large, very dilapidated looking barn surrounded by a few huts Trowa recognized from the Masai village.

"It's an abandoned manyatta," Duo supplied as they pulled closer, confirming his thoughts yet again.

In light of the growing questions now wracking Trowa's mind, they parked the jeep in an out-of-the way spot between a few haggard looking acacia trees and set out on foot to investigate the seemingly deserted area.

He'd done this countless times before, infiltrated, searched for evidence, spying on potential perpetrators, but never had Trowa done so with someone else in tow- especially someone he cared about. But Duo seemed to understand the necessity for stealth and caution before the trained agent had even had to warn him. The other man walked light on his feet and seemed to be looking to Trowa for direction instead of following his impulses like he seemed often wont to do.

So they went on, creeping around the building once in search of the truck, but coming up empty. They listened carefully and didn't speak to one another for some time, eventually coming to the front entrance to find a brand new looking padlock waiting there for them and no sound of voices or movement from inside the barn.

Trowa went to study the lock, but Duo brushed his hands aside, reaching down to his boot and pulling out what looked like a lock-pick. At first Trowa found the urge to question, but after about thirty seconds when the pad-lock clicked open, he swallowed down any curiosity and pulled open the large, wooden door.

Inside they were met with a gruesome sight. There were several metal tables with runoff drains attached; everything was stained brown and red. For a moment Trowa hesitated, wondering if this would now officially be too much for Duo to handle, but the other man just brought his signature bandana up to cover his nose and he moved forward, a look of determination in his eyes.

Trowa followed suit and then veered off towards a half-open crate propped against the wall near a few empty, but dirty looking cages. His stomach cringed at the thought, but his vision stayed glued to the crate, coming to rest on something familiar resting upon a bed of straw fibers.

"Duo," he prompted softly to get the other man's attention. As his roommate came closer, he lifted the lid and pushed it to lean against the floor to fully reveal the crate's contents.

Several tusks stared up at them, the ivory glinting in the soft light that glowed in from outside. Duo let out a rough breath, having to avert his eyes. Trowa raised his head to scour the rest of the building, finally coming to rest on a few machetes and a chainsaw hanging against the opposite wall. He could still remember vividly the hacking and whining sound it had made the night before.

Then his eyes fell to a small desk situated in the barn's corner, half hidden by crates and a few more cages. Trowa motioned Duo to follow and when they neared his eyes picked up the familiar forms he'd seen at Oz Corp a couple of days prior.

"Look," he said, picking up one of the forms. "A veterinary health certificate with Dr. Po's signature on it."

Duo snatched up the entire pile, flipping through it. "A whole bunch of 'em, all blank except with Sally's name plastered at the bottom of each one," he growled out.

Trowa shook his head, frowning. "They must photocopy the proof's and then trace her signature somehow."

He watched as Duo's fingers formed a fist. He slapped the papers back onto the desk. "That means if they're caught, Sally and the Compound will be implicated too."

"I'm not going to let that happen," Trowa answered as calmly as possible. He folded one of the papers and placed it in his back pocket, organizing the rest of them back the way they'd found them. "I hate to say it, but the only thing we can do now is leave all of this here. I've got to phone my supervisor and get some reinforcements."

Duo nodded, but Trowa could tell it was a hard idea for him to swallow. Of course, it was for Trowa too- he wanted nothing more than to handle it on his own and not call in Treize Kushrenada, but at this point he knew he couldn't continue to act all on his own, even if he requested the help of the Rangers.

The two men made their way back towards the door, closing it softly behind them and replacing the padlock, leaving everything just as it was. Duo was silent as they made their way back towards the jeep and Trowa had the urge to place reassuring hands against his tense shoulders, but then suddenly the braided man was turning with wide eyes to face him.

"What-" Trowa was saying, but before he could get another word out he watched as Duo's fingers fumbled down towards the side of his leg to pull out a metallic looking dart that suddenly was too familiar for comfort. It was the same one Wufei had pulled from an expired cheetah days before.

Lunging forward, Trowa tried to catch Duo as he slumped to the ground, eyes rolling back into his head, but it was too late, the man was already gone to the world. In a fit of realization Trowa reached back for his gun, but his movement was cut short as something sharp pierced into the skin of neck.

"No," he mouthed out, reaching for the dart, already feeling its effects coursing through his veins. His muscles slackened and his head began to swim, vision becoming blurry and knees buckling beneath him.

The last thing his eyes saw before they fell shut was Duo's face, looking calm and peaceful as if in a deep, dreamless sleep. Then daylight faded and Trowa fell forward into a dark and unknown oblivion.


	12. Eyes Of The Beholder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"I can't just go telling everyone around here that I'm undercover. That sort of defeats the entire purpose."_

The sensation of something rough scratching at his wrists was the first thing Trowa became aware of as he tried desperately to pull himself out of the dark pit he'd been pushed into an entirely unknown amount of time beforehand.

Slowly he blinked, pulling his eyelids apart to be met with blinding sunlight. His eyes snapped shut instinctively, but after a few moments of pupils struggling to contract, Trowa finally focussed enough to take in his surroundings. Dry dessert, small tufts of plant-life that looked to have been long since dead, cracked ground and dirt ensconcing him for miles.

He'd been in compromising situations before, but this was certainly a first.

Trowa pulled at the rope bindings pinioning his arms behind his back; there was very little slack, definitely not enough to release himself on his own. And even with the limited movement he could feel his wrists becoming raw already.

He went to pull himself into a sitting position, feeling the strain and cramping running through his shoulders at the effort. Thankfully his legs had been left free and so he could use them in an attempt at balance, even if his head began to spin with the new motion. Blinking back the sun's harsh rays and the dirt that marred half his face, Trowa's vision finally cleared and came to rest on the body lying only a couple of feet away from him.

_Duo_. Of course, how could he have forgotten? Trowa watched for a breathless moment until he saw the other man's chest rising and falling, albeit very lightly. Trowa set a foot against the man's thigh, shaking him softly.

"Duo, wake up." His mouth was dry and his voice sounded odd to his own ears.

The braided man mumbled something, eyelids fluttering, but they did not open. Trowa gave him another kick, this one less gentle. " _Duo_ ," he prompted, louder now.

Painstakingly slow, indigo peaked through thick lashes, first glazed, but then focussing on Trowa in perplexity. "Tro?" Duo's lips moved with the word, but no voice came out. He attempted to swallow and then try again, though it came out more like a rough mewl.

"Tro? What-" but he seemed to get distracted as he suddenly found the bindings at his own wrists and began to pull.

Trowa breathed out. "Bring your back to mine," he instructed, scooting against the dirt to turn his body. After a few seconds of incoherent fumbling, he heard Duo doing the same and then found the man's fingers searching for his own, slightly numbed, appendages.

At first it seemed like a struggle, his fingers navigating without any insight as to their current task, but as he explored the bindings he was able to find a knot, digging into it with a thumb nail and earning a bit of slack. Less than two minutes later he'd managed to free Duo, the other man working some sensation back into his sore arms before turning to return the favor.

"Where the hell are we?" Duo asked after a brief bout of silence, staring as Trowa rubbed at his scraped wrists, the pins and needles feeling finally passing.

"It appears the middle of nowhere," Trowa stated, his voice only wavering for a second.

Duo looked to him with that smirk. "Oh good, for a minute I thought we were lost."

Trowa had the urge to laugh, but it got caught in his throat. They needed water and fast, if nothing else got to them, dehydration was sure to hit quickly out in such a desert.

His eyes peered up at the sun now almost atop them in the clear sky. "We must have been unconscious all night. Whatever drugs they hit us with were powerful."

Duo's own gaze was peering around them in a three-hundred-sixty degree sweep. "Someone should be out looking for us by now then," he said before getting to his feet, only unsteady for a hesitant second. He splayed a hand towards his right, in the very far off distance they could just make out the shadowy peak of Ol Doinyo Lengai. "According to that, we're facing east as long as we keep the mountain to our right hand side, which means we're facing the direction of the Compound."

Trowa stood then too, if nothing else, just glad that Duo knew the surrounding area much better than he could ever have hoped to during his short time so far in Tanzania.

Then a thought occurred to him. Trowa reached into his pocket for the incriminating document he'd confiscated earlier, but came up empty. Damn, they'd been left for dead- an easy way to make it look like an accident too- and now even if they somehow made it out alive his investigation seemed to have been put right back where it had started. He sighed roughly, that was not something to dwell on as the 'making it out alive' seemed to be a very depressing 'if' at the moment.

So, fighting off their pressing thirst, the two men started to make their trek eastward. It was slow going across the barren expanse littered with sharp rocks, parched trunks winding their way up from cracks in the dirt, and scattered carcasses of animals that had been none-too-lucky.

"Vultures," Duo muttered once, shading his eyes to gaze up into the sky at the large, black birds circling overhead. Trowa could only hope that they were out of this mess before they got anymore acquainted with those particular scavengers.

They'd been walking for at least an hour, if not more according to the sun's path across the radiating blue above them, when Trowa noticed Duo's shoulders slumping a bit more than usual, his steps becoming ragged, and his mouth set in a rigid frown.

"Alright?" he wondered softly, carefully from his place beside the braided man.

Duo just nodded and swiped at the bandanna luckily still tied about his throat. He licked at chapped lips unsuccessfully and met Trowa's concerned vision with a sidelong glance. "Just- _thinking_. Got a lot of time for it at the moment."

Trowa couldn't argue with that logic, though now his curiosity towards the man was now suddenly piqued once again. "About the case?" he asked, knowing full well the answer he would receive.

He watched the other man's face tighten a bit before relaxing into something akin to amusement. "Actually, I've been thinking about me 'n you."

"Oh." Trowa attempted to swallow; maybe he was so certain. He'd meant to say it in a questioning manner, but the word came out flat and bland.

Duo turned to him then, a redness appearing under his skin- definitely not put there by the blazing sun overhead. He brought a fingers up to scratch at the back of his head and locked Trowa's gaze with an all-out sheepish grin. "I mean- not like  _that_."

Trowa gave a peaceful shrug. "It's alright," he said in hopes of quelling the man's obvious embarrassment- even if he himself was surprisingly proud of having been the cause of it.

"I just-" Duo sounded as though he were having a difficult time finding just the right words; an oddity that Trowa decided he found endearing. "I've been known to portray myself as a bit- promiscuous. And so in turn my roommates usually get the brunt of the teasing. Hence Wufei's little jabs."

Trowa wasn't sure what to say- and then he also wasn't sure what stupid impulse in his mind prompted him to lead with what tumbled forth next. "You and Quatre then?"

He received an ear-pleasing laugh for his efforts. "Me an' Quat? Nah, no way!" Duo said, happily incredulous. "I've actually never been involved with anyone here- contrary to popular opinion. Of course that was before  _you_ , Tro."

Involved. It was a funny word and it stuck in Trowa's mind like gossamer. He himself had been  _involved_  with people before, but this- this with Duo- it felt like something entirely different.

He made himself busy stepping over a large, dusty branch in his path. Trowa smiled to himself. "I didn't mean to pry."

"Shit-" Duo's hand smacked against the side of his arm. "-I'm the one who brought it up the first place." After the contact he watched the man curl in on himself, lips twitching at the corners. "Really- I've been meaning to talk to you for a while now."

Talk to  _him_? Trowa's brows furrowed, mind racing back over all the thoughts, queries, and suspicions he'd ever filed away on one Duo Maxwell. The sun suddenly seamed to be beating down against his skin, hotter than ever.

He turned and opened his mouth to speak, but Duo beat him to the punch. "I don't think I'm exactly the person you think I am, Trowa."

Abruptly Trowa's mouth snapped shut. That wasn't exactly what he'd been expecting. Duo shot him a slightly dubious look before continuing on. "I didn't exactly live a normal life up until a few years ago." He swiped damp bangs from his forehead. "I mean- I grew up on the streets. To be exact."

"Duo." Trowa breathed out, barely recognizing his own voice, soft and empathetic. He reigned it in immediately. Not like he'd had such a great existence floating around the system like a lost boy- but at least he'd had a roof over his head most of the time.

It seemed the braided man hadn't much noticed, or at the very least didn't care- perhaps used to undue sympathy. "It wasn't that bad, really. I remember a couple of the places we stayed- condemned, but it was better than nothing. When I was older- that's kinda when I got into some rough shit."

Duo's dirty boot kicked at a rock that scattered across the desert floor, landing a good several yards ahead of them. "When you're in with people and they feed you and protect you and you have nowhere else to go- you're kinda forced to play the game."

Trowa wanted so badly to interject, he wanted to tell Duo that an explanation wasn't necessary. Everyone had their past, their skeletons. Maybe it was the heat exhaustion getting to him, maybe he'd regret sharing his entire life story later when they were safe back at the Compound. In the crevices of Trowa's mind he was not entirely certain that there would be a later. He let Duo keep going.

"They did a lot of illegal shit- the gang- but I knew that going in, so if anyone's to blame it's me." Duo rubbed at the tip of his nose with the edge of his thumb. "And it was my own fault that I got caught too- I was the best of the best. Pickpocket, thief, hustler- whatever you wanna call it. But shit, we had to eat and the guy could clearly spare it- he was actually pretty good compared to some of my other- er-  _targets_. But I was stupid and lazy and didn't read the signs.

"I guess I was lucky though. Got off with a few months in juvie and a couple hundred hours worth of community service. Bet you'll never guess where I ended up."

Trowa glanced up then as he was invited back into the seemingly one-sided conversation. He was trying hard not to think of what Duo might've had to do to consider his target as 'pretty good.' He shook his head once. "Where?"

Duo fit him with a wide smile. "An animal shelter. And you'll never guess who I met there."

He could guess, but Trowa played along anyways. "Who?"

"Dr. Sally Po," Duo all but exclaimed. The gloomy tone that had overtaken him a few short moments ago was suddenly replaced by his usual, vivacious energy. "She was stateside- making rounds through some places for some grant that provided low-income areas with extra money to no-kill shelters and free-clinics. It was like this totally serendipitous thing. She told me all about the Compound, said that if I was ever in the area that she could always use an extra pair of hands- I don't think she thought I'd actually take her up on the offer."

Trowa let out a soft chuckle. "How did you ever come to 'be in the area' of East Africa?"

Duo's grin only widened, like the words had somehow been a challenge. "When I turned eighteen I took a test to get my GED- passed on the first try, I'll have you know. Got a job waiting tables-" he looked up to the sky, as if deep in thought. "-only took me about two years to save up. Bought a one-way ticket and never looked back."

Trowa was dumfounded- more than that, he was absolutely, entirely shocked. He quirked a brow. "And when you showed up on the Compound's doorstep?"

Duo laughed, once again slightly sheepish. It made Trowa's lips flutter. "It took a bit of convincing- but no one's ever been able to resist the Maxwell charm."

At that Trowa felt something bubble in his gut. Yes, that was certainly not an exaggerated statement. "I just have one question," he said, in lieu of the sudden flush crawling up his chest.

"What's up?" Duo had busied himself with swiping some previously unnoticed dirt from the bottom length of his braid.

"Your relationship with the Rangers?" It wasn't much, as far as questions actually go, but it certainly got the point across. Trowa began to picture Heero Yuy's harsh features in his mind, but also the way he looked to Duo with something like trust in his dark blue eyes. He tried hard to ignore the image of a bloodied hunting knife and a face devoid of emotion or guilt.

Duo nodded hesitantly. "The Sweepers- the people I mentioned, that's what they called themselves- it wasn't just hustling. They ran drugs and guns. I wasn't really involved in that sector- but I knew enough about it, learned the trade a bit here and there. I know a lot about stuff that guys on the other side of the law wouldn't. I look at things from a different perspective I guess you could say."

The words had tumbled so naturally and quickly from his mouth that when Trowa stopped short, Duo's eyes suddenly widened as he turned to face him. "Shit, Tro. Seriously, don't get the wrong idea-"

"Duo stop." He held up a hand to halt the onslaught. "I'm not going to judge you. I've done some things I'm not proud of, but that's a part of my job, a part of my life. I just wanted to understand why Ranger Yuy seems to trust you like he does."

Trowa watched Duo's muscles slacken, eyes blinking a few times. "Oh. Right."

He had the sudden, undeniable urge to reach out and kiss the look of sheepish guilt from his features. "Just because I'm an agent that doesn't mean-"

"Tro, I really hate to interrupt-" Duo raised a sharp finger just past his shoulder. "But look!"

Trowa turned to follow in the direction that the man was aiming his vision. At first he saw nothing more than the waves of heat rising off the ground in the distance, but then, if he squinted his eyes and placed a shading palm over his forehead, he could just make out a thicket of trees and green cover. "Think it's a mirage?" he muttered out, not totally processing clearly.

Duo just laughed. "There's only one way to find out. Come on, before the heat messes with our minds anymore than it already has."

* * *

Where there was plant-life there undoubtably had to be water. Or at least that's what Trowa's mind was trying to assure him. As they neared the thicket it appeared to be devoid of the cool, glistening relief he was hoping for. But upon closer inspection there was mud, thick and damp, surrounding the trunks of ragged, twisted looking trees.

Duo knelt down, grabbing for a broken branch and plunging the sharp edge into the mud, digging away the surface layer. There, bubbling up from beneath the gouging pit he'd created, came a steady stream of liquid.

They each reached down to fill their palms, the water cool against their chapped lips and sandpaper tongues. It tasted clean, if not a little gritty, but Trowa wasn't about to complain.

"How much farther back to the Compound do you think?" Trowa wondered after they'd both washed their reddening skin and quenched what they could of their immense thirst.

Duo shrugged, staring upwards at the sun now partially masked by a few thick branches. "Miles, lots of 'em. We might make it back before dark- if we're lucky."

Trowa had to swallow at that. The thought of being out in the middle of Tanzania at night with no weapons or shelter was not one he wanted to entertain. "Then we better get going. It's too bad we don't have some means of taking water with us-"

But his words were cut short as the sound of a low, grating growl emanated in the stifling air around them. Both men turned slowly to find a tawny shape rushing through the bushes a few feet from their bodies.

They barely had time to breathe before the animal was making its next move.

"There," Duo was hissing in his ear, pointing towards a large tree, forked in the middle, and about ten yards away.

Trowa understood, but had no time to react as the lion snarled, brushing through some deadened bushes to reveal sharp teeth and a thick mane. They took off with a few seconds head start, making a beeline for the massive tree.

Duo reached it first, launching off of his right foot to make a grab for a low-hanging branch, pulling himself up with ease and swinging his leg to catch his momentum against the trunk. He positioned himself to lean down, reaching for Trowa who latched onto his wrist, pushing off the ground only to climb upwards, but he'd not accounted for his leg, it was still weak from the stitched gash he'd received the day before, and gave under the pressure causing him to slip.

Duo managed to counterbalance, his grip still strong on the tree and on Trowa, but the second's worth of hesitation was all it took. The lion was pouncing, claws extended straight towards Trowa's vulnerable back.

But then suddenly a figure was darting across the dry ground, his dark skin glistening with sweat and wearing Masai beads and a loin cloth. It took him only a heartbeat to set his body between the attacking lion and its new prey, his warrior spear thrust firmly into the ground the sharpest end pointing upwards at just the right angle.

Then the man was yelling, charging, impaling. When Trowa's head turned all he could make out was a tangle of limbs beneath the large, limp body of the beast that had nearly killed him. Quickly the man rolled free, holding out a thick knife in precaution. It was En-Kai.

Trowa stared at the young man, the  _warrior_ , he'd met days before at the manyatta, stunned and in utter disbelief. It seemed Duo himself was frozen as well, but he finally loosened his grip on Trowa's arm when a familiar voice startled them both back to reality.

Heero Yuy was jogging towards them, slinging his unused rifle against his back, features not angry like Trowa had expected, but rather full of actual concern. "Are you two alright?" he called.

Trowa managed to step back down, minding his injured leg; he could feel the cool trickle of blood sliding down his calf, the wound clearly having been reopened with the sudden strain of activity. Duo came down next, hopping from his perch with odd grace.

"Alright," he nodded towards Heero, eyes then glancing towards Trowa with a grimace. "Though I think Tro here is gonna need some new stitches."

For once Trowa was inclined to agree with him. He tried to put weight on his leg, but it stung, sending pangs through the thick muscle there. "How did you manage to find us?" he wondered, trying not to let Duo see his scowl of discomfort.

Heero gestured towards En-Kai who was still busy studying the lion's unmoving form. "We were out searching. The Masai know the area better than even the Rangers do. Half the police force in the country is out looking for you-"

"Really?" Duo's eyes grew significantly larger at the news.

Nodding, Heero continued, bypassing the interruption with ease. "When you didn't return to the Compound Dr. Po telephoned me right away- it seems you have been getting into more trouble lately than normal, Maxwell."

Duo gave a sheepish grin, hooking a thumb over his shoulder at Trowa. "Bad influence," he joked, half-heartedly.

Trowa scowled, but Heero didn't seem to take the man seriously anyways. Instead the Ranger turned to En-Kai, speaking in the boy's native tongue and gesturing towards the lion's body. Trowa wondered vaguely if he'd let the killing slide, remembering what En-Kai had told him about tradition.

Duo was suddenly at his ear, grabbing at Trowa's arm and offering his body as a sort of crutch. "If you're going to trust anybody, Tro, it's gonna be Heero. He knows what he's doing and he can help-"

"I can't just go telling everyone around here that I'm undercover. That sort of defeats the entire purpose," Trowa growled back.

But Duo just shook his head. "I get that, I do. But you trusted me and now we've gotten this far and I think Heero can help us set a trap."

The man was right, he had trusted him and they had made strides together. Not limited to almost getting killed, but he'd have to count his blessings later. Trowa frowned. "A trap?"

"The poachers think we're dead, right?" Duo turned his head to face Trowa, their mouths only a few inches apart. "Then that means we've got an ace up our sleeves."

Trowa blinked, trying not to stare at those inviting lips. "Yeah, alright." He sighed roughly and then added, "But after we've talked to Heero there's a phone call I'm going to have to make."

* * *

The conversation with Ranger Yuy was quick and efficient. In fact, he'd seemed utterly unsurprised by the entire explanation, which for some reason bothered Trowa in a meaningless sort of way. But he'd agreed to help, clearly holding the same level of disgust towards the poachers as Wufei and Sally and even Duo.

But when they'd gotten back to the Compound the men found the large plantation house empty and not much of a welcoming committee to greet them.

The girl whom Trowa had met previously, Hilde, ran to Duo with a hug that he seemed flustered by and Ranger Winner met him with a relieved looking grin.

"Sally and Wufei left," Quatre informed them. "To search for the two of you."

"What hypocrites!" Duo exclaimed. "They can't even follow their own advice."

"How long have they been gone?" Trowa asked abruptly. "Where did they go?"

Hilde was at his side then, kneeling to examine the dried blood on his leg; he'd almost forgotten about that. "They left a couple of hours ago," she answered, placing delicate fingers against his skin.

"We're not sure where they went," Quatre added. "But I can give them a call on the radio- tell them that you've made it back to the Compound."

Trowa nodded and then looked down at the dark haired girl behind him. "Hilde-"

But Ranger Yuy shot Trowa a pointed look. "Get your leg looked at first- then you can make your phone call."

And so, with Duo smirking somewhere in the background, Trowa could do little arguing on that order.

* * *

It didn't take long to stitch up the partially healed wound and apply new bandages, but by the time Hilde had finished her work Trowa could tell his muscles had grown tense with new concerns and anticipation.

The girl was gracious enough to sense his unease and led him back towards the office he'd used days earlier, closing the door behind her when she left and explaining that she'd go and find Duo for him in the meantime. There'd been something almost teasing about the way her smile curled up at the edges, but he tried his best to ignore it.

Trowa stared at the phone. As much as he knew this was the protocol he needed to follow, he really didn't want to pick it up and contact Kushrenada. There was just something he didn't like about the man and having to render the case partially to him seemed almost like a backwards step.

But still, protocol and Une's imaginary voice in his mind won over. He clicked away a memorized length of numbers into the old rotary phone and then waited, trying not to let each passing ring weigh any heavier in his thoughts as they already were.

"Kushrenada," came the abrupt response, fifth ring in.

"Agent Bar-" he bit his tongue. "-Agent Bloom, reporting."

"Ah,  _Bloom_ \- can I assume you've found something more than whatever speculatory drivel you've given us in your written reports then?"

"I haven't located Merquise, if that's what you mean," Trowa replied, slow and even.

He was met with the sound of a fist slamming against a metal desk. "Well, he's tough," Kushrenada answered vaguely.

Trowa was beginning to feel as though this phone call had been a mistake. "A Ranger I've been working closely with has lined up a meeting tonight with Oz Corp. Mostly for purposes of distraction, to misguide any suspicion."

"The organization you suspect? Is that such a wise decision- letting someone else handle it?" He could hear Kushrenada's condescending tone through the telephone, strikingly clear.

Trowa was shaking his head though the action was meaningless. "I'll be doing my part staking out the poachers. I've discovered a potential base-"

"Look, kid, do what suits you best, but something's just come up here," came the abrupt interruption. "You take care of things at Natron, I'll deal with things on my end. You let me know when they move their product, got it?"

Yes, Trowa 'got it,' but still relinquishing some of his investigation- the investigation he'd managed to risk his life for countless times already- was making him feel like a bit of a copout. But, diligently enough, Trowa answered, "Roger," and then hung up.


End file.
